


Shift

by Fai_Gensou



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn
Genre: Suicide Attempt, canon-related self harm(aka Zeno's power), it'll get better I swear, warning Hak dies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-08-04
Packaged: 2019-10-01 22:48:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 39,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17252852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fai_Gensou/pseuds/Fai_Gensou
Summary: Outcomes hang on threads and inches, for it is the slightest margins that determine the difference between life and death.It is by a margin that Hak dies instead of living, and it is by another, equally slim, margin that Yona decides to become strong enough to make her life be equal in worth to his death.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, I stumbled across a ‘Hak dies’ story, and while the concept was fascinating, the execution left me saying ‘I can do better’. So this is my attempt, which I’m mostly writing for one scene in Water, since it wouldn’t make sense outside of context, even as a random one shot omake.

All Yona could do was stare blankly at the stone and the mound of earth, too numb to summon tears.

Hak was…gone.

The boy, Yun, had been in the middle of scolding her, for expecting help to be freely given and really, you could try saying thank you--, when Hak started shuddering violently. Shoving her to the side, Yun hovered over him, swearing as the oracle moved in to help.

But then the shuddering stopped, and Hak was unnaturally still.

She hardly heard the words ‘adverse reaction’, let alone Yun leaving to dig a hole for…then the oracle was helping Yun with Ha-the body, her blindly following behind.

She scarcely registered the vaguely familiar words the oracle said as the hole was filled in, the pair leaving her alone at the…at the…

Her legs finally gave out, sending her to the ground. The sudden impact jarred her from her numbness, and then the tears started, harder than she could ever recall crying before.

Hak was dead. He wasn’t supposed to leave! He was all that she had in this strange world outside the castle, where there were people as kind as Mun-dok, and people willing to hate her because of her status and her ignorance, like Yun.

Yun’s voice echoed in her ears, asking if she had ever thanked Hak for anything, louder and louder. Hiccupping, she covered her ears, trying to block out the voice. _Should I have thanked Hak? He was only protecting me because he had been ordered to by Father…_

_…No, ‘Son Hak’ had. To keep Fuuga safe, he gave up the clan name Mun-dok gave him. Leaving me behind was him still keeping to his vow to Father. I’m the one who forced him to take me with him._

_And now he’s dead._

_Hak died because I was selfish and clingy, not wanting to be left alone with strange people in a strange place._

_I…I killed him…_

_He tried to keep me safe, and the only thanks he got was his death…_

The air was still, yet it still felt like something was moving her hair. Somehow, she got the hiccups to stop. Moving to rub her eyes, she paused as she remembered what she had so carefully hidden in her dress, when she had gone to stop Hak from leaving without her.

Slowly, she reached into her dress and pulled out The Hairpin.

‘I love your hair. It’s like the blush of the sky at dawn.’

_No it’s not; it’s the blood of the people I cared for, as they were slaughtered…_

Staring at it, it occurred to her for the first time just how sharp it was. Hairpins were meant to be sharp, in case of invasion…and dishonor.

Despite herself, the words of the castle matron came back, the demonstration she had been given, the red paint on the dulled hairpin as she showed her where to…

_Hak should have let the arrow kill me._

Shifting her hold on The Hairpin, the memory of the castle matron’s hands guiding her, she rested the points on her throat, right over her racing pulse.

_Hak should have never intervened that night._

Her eyes were still watery, but inside she was oddly calm.

* * *

Up a nearby tree, a blond boy who, unknown to her, had been shadowing her her whole life tensed into a crouch, heart in his throat. “There’s no way she’ll really—!” He muttered, partly to himself, partly to the ghost beside him, who had joined him in his vigil over the girl.

“There’s every way…” The ghost growled, sounding more cat than human.

With a clap of thunder, the ghost was gone.

* * *

There was the sound of thunder, and sharp pain in her hand as something with teeth bit her. “OW!” Clutching her hand, Yona realized The Hairpin was gone.

“MROW!”

Turning to the sound, she saw a pair of blue eyes glowing bright in the darkness.

It was a cat, black as Hak’s—as night, and it had The Hairpin in its mouth.

Seemingly satisfied that it had her attention, it darted away.

Blinking, she staggered to her feet. “Hey that’s mine!” She complained, chasing after the cat.

* * *

(Up in the tree, the blond boy let out a huge sigh of relief, before following the cat and the girl. As much as he would deny it, the doll-like state the girl had been in was uncomfortably familiar.)

* * *

As she ran after the cat, everything she had blocked out in her numbness seeped back in. It was now the middle of the night, she had left the house without her shoes, her legs ached, her stomach was determined to be heard, and now that she was paying attention—

“Ah!” Still somewhat stiff-legged, Yona tripped on a tree root. “Oww…”

Rising up onto her hands and knees, she spotted the cat, looking entirely too pleased with itself.

Then she saw what the cat was sitting on.

Not bothering to stand up, she just crawled over to the base of the cliff, and Hak’s polearm. She thought she had heard it called a ‘guandao’; she just knew it was a foreign design, and heavier than most polearms. Hak used it with far more dexterity than the average soldier did with the lighter standard issue spear.

Showing its sturdiness, the fall off the cliff left it in the same condition it had been in before the fight.

“Okay, you found Hak’s weapon. So what? It’s not like he can…” She stubbornly blinked back the tears, reaching towards the cat and The Hairpin.

The cat dodged, and her hand landed on the shaft of the weapon. With striking gentleness, the cat set The Hairpin down on top of her hand.

“You’ll give me The Hairpin back if I take Hak’s weapon?” She asked, glancing between the weapon, the cat, and her hand.

“Nyao.” The cat head butted her other hand.

Obliging, she started scratching its ears. The way it practically melted under her efforts made her smile, and a tear leak out. Maybe it was the way it leapt in and stopped her, or simply because of where… “You remind me of him.” She told the cat. “Did he send you? Keeping his vow to Father, even after death? Even after I…”

That got her a hint of a bite, the teeth touching her skin but no pressure behind them. “…I’m being spineless again, aren’t I?” She asked. “Killing myself won’t bring him back. No matter how much I felt like I should be the one dead, I can’t turn back time and trade places with him.”

The tears were coming too fast again for her to fight. Swallowing hard, she made herself focus on the metal beneath her hand, the assuring solidity of the weapon. “All I can do…is live a life worthy of his sacrifice.” She decided.

Something wet and rough licked her cheek and tears. Opening her eyes, for a brief moment she saw Hak’s face, but the image faded too quickly to catch, and by the time she fully opened her eyes, she only sees the cat’s face. “Are you going to be keep an eye on me, to make sure I keep my promise?” She asked, tucking The Hairpin back into her dress.

“Nya~” Leaping down from where it had been perched on her lap, he sat down to watch her, tail flicking.

Shifting, she starts standing up, polearm in hand. It was heavier than she thought, and the effort of lifting it left her overbalanced enough to fall back and land on her bottom. “Shut up.” She said, glaring at the cat she just knew was laughing at her, despite the illusion of disinterest.

If nothing else, Hak was laughing at her from wherever, with Father… “To live a life worth Hak’s death, I have to disobey Father, and use weapons.” She acknowledged, looking up at a sky starting to lighten with the approaching dawn.

“But…I’m not strong enough to survive without one. I’m not smart or strong or brave. I’m just…selfish. I don’t know if any life I could live could ever approach Hak’s death. But I won’t know unless I try. And…I can’t get a real answer from Su-won the way I am now.” Prepared for the weight, she made it to her feet this time.

She felt small next to the full length of the polearm. “I’m sorry Father. If I’m ever going to survive…I have to fight, and use weapons and draw blood and maybe even… I hope, when we meet again, you can forgive me for it…”

After some brief fumbling and another near-tumble, she figured out the best way she could comfortably carry the polearm. The cat that was her savior leading the way, she started making her way back to the house where the oracle and Yun lived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...please don't hurt me... For a story where he lives, go check out 'Drawn'.


	2. Chapter 2

Yun grimaced at yet another bun, blackened because he couldn’t keep his mind on his cooking. “Not like I can’t scrap it off…” He mumbled, beginning to do just that instead of risking more uncooked buns.

His mind kept going back to the Princess. After her guard had that adverse reaction to the poison and died, she seemed like a doll, going through the motions without realizing it. When she hadn’t returned at dinner time, Yun grabbed some rice balls and returned to where they had buried him.

He heard her before he saw her, collapsed on the ground, sobbing her heart out. He didn’t think she realized she was speaking, saying things like ‘you weren’t supposed to leave’ and ‘my fault’.

‘My fault’.

To be completely honest with himself, it was not the reaction he had pictured.

It was so much easier to hate someone if you never saw them acting and reacting like everyone else.

Ik-su was waiting for him outside the house when he wandered back, rice balls still in hand. “Her whole world has been destroyed.” He said once Yun was in sight. “Her father killed by the one she loved, chased from the only place she had ever known under imminent death, and now her last finger hold onto ‘before’ is dead. Tonight…tonight will be the key.” His unusually-colored eyes (the visible mark to the world that he was an oracle, he had told Yun once) were peeking through his bangs, so Yun knew he was serious.

“The key to what, though?” Yun asked, moving to take down the guard’s coat and robe that he had washed and mended.

“The path this country will follow. While things may improve for a short while with the usurper on the throne, the country will fall into ruin without the return of its Crimson King.”

“It’s not like you to be this forthcoming.” Yun noted, beyond worried at this unexpected clarity. _Are the gods—is Ik-su saying that the Princess is the reincarnation of the Crimson King?_

“You are too brilliant and too kind to waste away here with me, waiting for the tides of fortune to turn.” Ik-su said in lieu of an explanation, giving him a smile that was both warm and sad.

Now after a restless night, Yun kept burning food and fighting the urge to go back to the grave and make her eat and remind her that it wasn’t the end of the world.

A black cat trotted up to his basket of buns, sniffing at them curiously. “Oi, those aren’t yours.” He grumbled, retrieving a burned one that he hadn’t been able to salvage.

“Excuse me…where did the oracle go?” Looking up in the direction of the voice, Yun did a double take.

“You look horrible.” The words left his mouth before he could stop himself.

It was true; Princess Yona had dirt stains all over her dress, her feet were scratched up, there were still tear stains on her face, and—“Is that blood?!” Yun exclaimed, jumping up to examine the blood more closely.

There were two parallel scratches on her throat. The blood was dry, but Yun didn’t think she had anything on her that she could have hurt herself with. “It’s alright; I was just being stupid, like usual.” She brushed off his concern.

To his embarrassment, Yun just now noticed the huge-ass polearm she was carrying. “What is that?”

“It was…it was Hak’s. He dropped it, before…” She seemed ready to burst into tears again, but with a steadying breath, she kept them in, somehow. “Where did the oracle go? I’d like to talk to him…” She asked again.

Pointing, Yun answered, “Just follow this path and it ends up at a cliff near a waterfall. That’s his favorite place to meditate.”

Watching her nearly fall to the ground as she readjusted her hold on the polearm, Yun got an inkling as to the origin of the dirt stains on her dress. “Thank you.” She said quietly, to his surprise.

Bowing before walking away (compounding his surprise), Yun watched the Princess disappear from view before turning back to his cooking. “HEY!!!”

The damn cat had eaten not only the charred bun, but most of the ones in his basket too! “Meow.” It was utterly unrepentant as it darted away, in the same direction as the Princess.

With a shrug, Yun found himself following after them.

* * *

“How did he make it look so easy?” Yona mumbled to herself as she walked down the path Yun said led to the oracle.

She had fallen three more times since finding the polearm when her arms had gotten tired and she tried changing her hold on it. So far the easiest way was holding it with the blade pointed down, even though she wasn’t strong enough yet to carry it with only one hand.

She found the waterfall, the oracle sitting on the ground taking in the view. Turning to look at her, she was surprised to see tears on his face. “Lord Oracle…?” She said, stopping a few feet from him.

He rubbed his arm across his eyes, scrubbing away the tears. “It is good to see you alive. It was a very close thing, last night.”

She looked away from his gaze, her throat twinging with pain where The Hairpin had scratched her, when the cat had stopped her. “Have you come to learn what the gods have to say?” He asked, as the cat caught up and settled down at her feet, Yun right behind it.

“…no.” She decided. “I doubt there is anything they have to say to me. I plan to live a life worth Hak’s death. And I can’t do that by being told what to do or doing nothing. Doing nothing got Hak killed, and I have to live with that.” The cat decided to leap onto her shoulder, something that surprised her less than it should have. “I’m going to learn how to fight and survive and grow strong, so Hak’s sacrifice was not one made in vain. So that someday, I’ll be strong enough to protect the people close to me.”

Yun could scarcely believe his ears. _I’m starting to doubt the whole ‘not lovers’ thing…_ He thought as she added, “My selfish goals are not worth the attention of the gods, even the tiny bit they spare for mortals.”

“Your ‘selfish’ goals are every reason to hear what they have to say.” Ik-su countered with a shake of his head, to Yona’s and Yun’s shock. “To truly survive, and not just exist, you cannot stay here. You can only learn to fight and grow strong outside of this place, but if you go alone, you will die. Those that triggered this chain of events will not tolerate your continued existence. Knowing the struggles you will face between here and the fulfillment of your goals, do you still wish to pursue those goals?” He asked.

“…if I don’t try, then there is no way I can face Hak or Father again. Even though the path I wish to follow defies everything Father has ever believed in…” Yona’s eyes were wet, even as the cat’s tail curled around her throat, almost protectively. “…in the end, I’m not strong enough to survive any other way.”

“Then I will share the voice of the gods with you.” Turning back around, Ik-su pressed his hands together and raised his head to the sky.

Yona and Yun both felt the hair on the back of their necks stand up as Ik-su began to speak.

_**Darkness falls upon the great earth** _   
_**Through the blood of dragons and the sacrifice of lightning, a revival comes again** _   
_**Bound by the covenant of old** _   
_**When the Four Dragons assemble** _   
_**The sword and shield that protect the monarch shall awaken** _   
_**And the red dragon shall return at dawn, heralded by the sound of thunder** _

Ik-su fell over once he finished speaking. “It takes a lot of energy to channel the gods…”

“Cut the old man routine you idiot.” Yun scolded, poking his shoulder.

Yona’s mind raced as she thought over what she had just heard. “’The red dragon’…do they mean Hiryuu-ou? Hiryuu-ou is supposed to come back?” She asked.

Before Ik-su or Yun could respond, she continued. “Are…are they saying…? That I…”

Slowly, she sank to her knees as Ik-su rolled over to look at her.

The weight of his oddly-colored gaze gave her her answer.

“But I’m nothing like him! There’s no way—he was strong and kind and a dragon god! I’m none of those things! I’m just a stupid, weak girl! I call myself the princess of a kingdom I know nothing about! Red hair doesn’t make me him! He’s everything I that I could never—!”

“Only because you’ve never been given the chance to be anything but what you have been.” Her heart ached as the familiar voice spoke.

Looking behind her, her breath caught in her throat as she spotted the source; a blond boy who appeared to be about her age.

But appearances are very deceiving. “Zeno…” She whispered as she started crying. “You don’t know that.”

“But I do. Il spoiled you, yes, but not just because you were his beloved daughter. He also spoiled you in order to protect you from the truth. Of who you had once been, and the darkness he knew would surround you, if you showed any hint.” Zeno said as he walked over, crouching down in front of her. “I know because there are things that could never be masked. Your charisma, your kindness.”

A hand cupped her cheek, the thumb brushing away tears. “I don’t want to disappoint you. Any of them, but you most of all. Not after all that time spent waiting. You deserve someone better than me to be bound to.” She sniffed, the cat nuzzling the cheek Zeno wasn’t cupping.

“There is no one better. But if I can’t change your mind on that, then become that better someone. It wasn’t Il’s order that Hak died for; he died for his fire princess. So let that be your motivation, and let your fire blaze bright.” Zeno told her, moving his head enough that it drew her attention to the amulet hanging off of his head scarf.

She ran a fingertip over the dragon carved on the surface. “…’fire princess’, huh?” She whispered, the cat purring in her ear.

A tap on Zeno’s shoulder pulled them out of the little world they had entered. “Ah, who are you?” Yun asked. “And what language are you speaking?”

Yona furrowed her brow. “We were speaking Koukan, weren’t we…?” She had scarcely finished her question when she realized the answer herself. “…it was ancient Koukan…”

“Ouryuu-sama.” Ik-su, having made his way to his feet, greeted Zeno with a bow.

“’Ouryuu-sama’…as in the Dragon Warrior Ouryuu?!” Yun exclaimed.

“Of course.” Yona answered without thinking about it, frowning as her words caught up with her. “There’s only ever been one Ouryuu.”

“The power of Ouryuu doesn’t quite work as one would think. Suffice to say, the power is not one that can be handed down the generations as the others have.” Zeno replied, dodging the implied question.

He hadn’t intended to reveal himself to Yona this soon, but between the suicide attempt last night, and how utterly fragile and alone she looked…

…Zeno was never very good, at ignoring damsels in distress of any kind. _I guess instead of the bright and cheerful one, I’ll have to be the strong one, at least for a little while…_ “Zeno’s not a good fighter, but he’ll teach you the best he can, on using the late mister’s weapon and bows and swords.” He promised. “As we get the others.”

“…but will they really help me?” Yona asked, looking down at the pole arm she was still holding. “Regardless of who I had been, now I’m…”

“Whether or not they help is for them to decide. But only you can decide to unite them. Even if Fate says they will gather, that means nothing if you don’t go to them.” Ik-su said. “But for now, let’s enjoy some of Yun’s cooking, now that he’ll be able to keep his attention on it.”

“If a certain cat doesn’t eat it all.” Yun grumbled as he glared at the cat, who ignored him.

* * *

Yun clucked his tongue as he tended to the scratches on the Princess’s neck. “These are deeper than I thought…” He mumbled to himself, sparing a quick glance at Ouryuu Zeno, whom he had delegated the task of minding the buns when the Princess returned from washing off, drowning in Ik-su’s spare robe and with a hand pressed to her throat. “They’ll probably scar.”

“A reminder to not be stupid again.” She commented, twisting her hands in the robe as Yun dabbed on his ointment, biting her lip against the sting.

“What DID you hurt yourself with?” Yun couldn’t help asking, a bit baffled.

She reached into her folded dress and shift, and Yun let out a low whistle at the gorgeous hairpin she pulled out. “Su-won gave it to me, for my birthday. And hours later, with the same hand…he stabbed Father in the heart.” She explained quietly. “Once I was old enough, the castle matron had showed me, where…” She slid the hairpin back into the folds. “The cat stopped me.”

Yun looked at the cat, who had utterly ignored the defenseless buns in favor of watching his hands with hyper focus, tracking his every move like it was stalking prey. “Well if it’s going to stick around, you should probably name it.” He remarked, rinsing his hands of blood and ointment before taking his cooking back over.

“It reminds me of Hak, but I don’t want to name it ‘Hak’.” Yona said, nibbling on a bun.

“Well Mister’s nickname was ‘Raiju’, wasn’t it Miss?” Zeno brought up, glancing between her and her bun.

Making a face, she started taking bigger bites, despite her lack of appetite. “I know; don’t waste food.” She commented with a half-hearted glare at Zeno. “So what do you think, ‘Raiju’ good for you?” She asked the cat.

“Nyao~!” The cat answered, rolling over onto its back, baring its belly.

“I guess that’s a yes. Though we better keep an eye on it, in case he runs off after a female cat in heat.” Yun noted the cat’s gender.

“Huh? Why would a female cat get hot, and why would Raiju chase after one?” Yona asked with a blink, rubbing the newly named Raiju’s belly.

“To make kittens.” Yun said dryly.

Yona eyed Raiju. “You’re not gonna leave me for a strange pussy cat, are you?” She asked with a pout.

“MROW?!” Raiju seemed offended that she had even asked the question.

“Zeno thinks we don’t need to worry on that front.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, 'Raiju' means 'lightning beast', but what goes with lightning? Thunder.


	3. Chapter 3

Yun just shook his head as, after prodding the Princess into eating three buns, Ouryuu Zeno cajoled her into lying down.

She was asleep practically as soon as she was horizontal, Raiju the cat curling up next to her. Pulling him closer to her, she mumbled something as she settled into sleep. “So the Crimson King was real…along with his warriors…” He marveled as he took out the guard’s robe and coat, considering.

“After Ou-sama died, there were those who wanted the power of the Dragon Warriors for themselves. After one incident, where Ab-Seiryuu was kidnapped, we all scattered. After that, Zeno didn’t see any of the other Dragon Warriors, until the red star appeared in the sky, the morning the Miss was born.” Zeno joined Yun outside as Yun started ripping seams.

“Still…” Yun eyed the guy who seemed to be as old as Kouka herself. “You don’t seem like much of a warrior.”

“Yeah, Zeno doesn’t know why he was picked either.” He conceded, scratching his head. “The best he can figure is that there’s no better shield than someone who doesn’t look like one. Not that Ou-sama let me fight. Zeno had planned on waiting until she found the others, but with the mister dead, and what happened last night…I’m horrible at ignoring damsels in distress.”

“What IS your power, exactly? I kinda thought Ouryuu would be covered in scales, or be all muscular…” Yun asked cautiously, doing mental calculations as he started pinning pieces of cloth together.

He damn near leapt out of his skin as Zeno casually took the nearby ax and chopped his hand off. “What the—“

His frantic rush for medical supplies was stopped as the hand lifted up off the ground and reattached to the arm. Yun just stared at the sight as golden scales shimmered into sight at the place where the hand and arm rejoined. “…do that again and you’re washing your own clothes…” Was all he could say, running a finger across the scales.

“Duly noted. Zeno’s not a good fighter anyway, so he doesn’t plan on getting in the thick of it, unless the others need help. Once the scales come out, he gains strength like Hakuryuu or Ryokuryuu, so skill isn’t a requirement.” He added. “But don’t say anything once we meet the others, alright?”

“Huh? Why not?” Yun questioned, before protesting, “Don’t assume that I’m going with you!”

“I hadn’t planned on saying anything to start with; I never expected Yona to recognize me, or show any sign of remembering anything from Ou-sama. It doesn’t make a difference anyway, since without an injury Zeno’s powerless.” Zeno shrugged. “And of course you’re going with us; you’ve only known her a day, yet you’re worrying over her. Not to mention what you’re making.”

Flushing, Yun didn’t say anything. _I doubt he’d believe me if I said I’d only come along to make sure I get paid one day…but he is right about worrying over her. It seems like she could shatter with the slightest touch, yet there’s this…strength to her._ “Do you think she’ll try again?” He finally asked.

Raiju’s ears twitched, and his eyes opened.

“…probably not. Despair…it can lead you to do weird things. That’s not to say she won’t be in a delicate place, or that she’ll be perfectly fine…” Zeno finally decided.

Sending the sleeping princess one last look, Yun focused in on Ouryuu Zeno as his needle flashed through fabric. “So what was it like back then? Serving Hiryuu-ou?”

With a mix of sadness and a touch of eagerness, Zeno began. “Ou-sama…he had a magnetic personality, and could be surprisingly perceptive and blindingly oblivious at the same time. Once…”

* * *

_“Nyao-ow!”_

_She was small, tripping over her hem as she ran to Mama and Papa. “Mama! Papa! Nyao-ow!”_

_“A cat?” Mama asked as she stood._

_She nodded fiercely. “Cat ow!”_

_Grabbing Mama’s hand, she dragged her over to the courtyard corner, where the black cat was huddled, licking at a cut on its leg. “Cat ow!” She repeated again, as Mama knelt down by the cat._

_“You can’t touch, little dove. It might—“ She didn’t realize what Mama was saying until she had already started petting the cat. It seemed to like her, not growling when Mama picked both of them up._

_“Il? Could you get a bowl of water and some bandages? Somehow a cat got in the courtyard, and its hurt.” Mama asked Papa._

_It let her hold it as Mama tended the cut, only hissing once as the cut was cleaned and wrapped up carefully. She stayed close to it through the next few days, convincing Won to stay near it with her, when Scary led him over two days after she found it._

_But then the cat was gone, and sometime later the cat came back, but it was a boy._

_It was so obvious that the boy had been the cat, but he looked at her funny when she tried telling him that she knew, and by the time she could properly explain, she had forgotten about how the boy had been a cat._

* * *

_They were escaping the castle, sometimes Hak dragging her along, sometimes Raiju the cat darting ahead, her straining to keep up._

_There was so much blood, and the body that was the source of the blood flickered between Hak and Raiju so fast they blurred into one._

_Sobbing over them, Su-won appeared, handing her The Hairpin as the dark figure who had scared her said, “She brings death to all, so she must die for the good of the kingdom.”_

* * *

Yona woke up with a gasp, heart racing. Raiju’s purring slowed her heart rate, and he didn’t complain when she pulled him closer, running her hands through his fur. _No blood or cuts…or scars…_

She wasn’t sure why she thought there would be a scar, the details of what she had dreamed fading fast. The sun seemed to have barely shifted, but there was only Yun in the hut, surveying something he had spread on the floor. “You’re finally awake.” He commented as she sat up.

“Finally? I haven’t been asleep that long, have I?” She asked, not sure why her eyes were so crusty as she rubbed them.

“Ah, you’ve been asleep the whole day.” He noted. “So it’s now tomorrow.”

“I’VE SLEPT A WHOLE DAY!?!?!” She exclaimed. “It doesn’t feel like it…”

“Well, Ik-su’s meditating, like always, and Zeno went to buy a couple supplies from the nearest town. I’m not sure I want to know where the money came from…” Yun told her as she stood and stretched.

“He probably looted from some bandits and I have no clue how I could begin to know that.” She said, sitting back down as she grew aware of her various aches.

“While you were asleep he said he hadn’t expected you to remember anything from Hiryuu-ou, so maybe that’s it?”

“Maybe…” Yona craned her head. “What’s that?”

Suddenly she had a lapful of familiar blue cloth. “This is…”

“What you were wearing was trashed, and it’s not like he really needs it anymore…” Yun mumbled, ears turning red as he exited, sliding a door she hadn’t noticed before shut so she could change.

Slowly, she shed the orac—Ik-su’s spare robe, pulling on the cream color tunic-type dress, that was shorter than she was used to, striking her legs mid-calf. Next was Hak’s robe, cut down to better fit her and with elbow length sleeves, with a maroon sash and one of the black ribbons/straps of cloth (he fussed when she called them ribbons) he had tied around his forearms serving as a sash ribbon.

Last was his jacket. She found herself pressing her nose into the collar, breathing in and still finding a trace of his scent. A meow from Raiju drew her from her daze, and she slid the jacket on. “I’m done…” She called to Yun, letting him know she was done changing.

“I mean, it’s not silk, at least the dress isn’t…” Yun rambled as she hugged herself.

“…is it weird, that it’s almost like he’s holding me?” Yona asked. “The morning after, when he hugged me, and said that we’ll go someplace where I can be safe…it feels like that.”

Slowly, she reached up and unclipped her earrings. “These had been Mother’s. I don’t know how much they’re worth, but the stone’s jade…” She held them out for Yun to take. “It should cover at least some of—“

Yun plucked the earrings from her hand, and stepped in to put them back on her in the same motion. “Look, ignore everything I said about expecting help for nothing, okay? I was taking my hatred of nobles out on you, and at the wrong time.”

“That doesn’t make it any less true!” She protested.

“I am not taking the only thing you have from either of your parents for payment, alright? Besides, someone has to come and make sure you’re all fed and clothed and stay in one piece. So those would just be a drop in the bucket.” Yun was looking away, his whole face red.

Yona couldn’t contain her watery giggle. “You’re adorable Yun. And kind. You don’t have to be harsh all of the time.”

Yun declined to respond, just pulling out his scissors to even up the ragged ends of hair from when she cut herself free from Tae-Jun’s hold. His ears were still burning as he snipped.

* * *

“Su-won’s been crowned.” Zeon announced when he returned, carrying a short sword and bow with a quiver full of arrows, along with a couple of wrapped bundles.

Yun noticed the blank spot on the quiver and the sheath where the Fire Tribe symbol would have been, but said nothing.

“At least Fuuga is safe now. Now that Mun-dok’s voted for him, they should have undammed the river…” Yona set down her cup as her hands started shaking.

“Needless to say, most of the gossip and market chatter is about him, and how the son of Prince Yuhon will be a better King than Il.” Zeno commented, vaguely apologetic.

“Right, Prince Yuhon had been the elder son…do you know why he had been passed over?” Yun asked Yona.

She shook her head. “No…Uncle having been Father’s elder brother never really intruded. I avoided him as much as I could; he terrified me. Su-won…he looked up to him. He accused Father of having killed Uncle and making it look like an accident, and said he was acting in revenge, but then one of the people with him said that Father was leading the kingdom to ruin…”

“There were vague rumors of war crimes during the war with Xing seventeen years ago, but Zeno doesn’t know much more.” He added.

“There was nothing in the tax reports that I saw that indicated trouble. The only thing I had noticed was that in Earth, mine output was down, and the Lord of the port of Awa was making more claims of losses to piracy.” Yona said, frowning as she thought back. “Fire…wait, there was a request of a tax write-off for military equipment, but the numbers seemed off to me. I don’t remember the exact numbers, but something about the request was strange.”

“You saw the tax reports?” Yun asked.

She nodded. “Father didn’t involve me in anything else, but Mother had started teaching me finances using the tax reports when she died, and he did keep that up. On my fifteenth birthday I was properly given responsibility for the castle’s household budget, and he started letting me officially act as his hostess for events, but foreign policy outside the import taxes? Military affairs? Nothing.”

“The southern part of Fire has been in a drought and famine for years. I hardly remember a time where there wasn’t a struggle for food and taxes, or the worry…” Yun said. “The land needs a lot of strong workers and time to recover, but all able-bodied men are conscripted. There’s probably a few that can bribe their way out, but those that could aren’t in a position to have to work to start with. And the area affected only gets larger and larger each year.”

“…but there’s been no petition for tax relief in the affected area, no requests for aid from other Tribes or the royal coffers. Just write-off requests for military equipment. Yes the General is responsible for troop preparedness, but he has an equal responsibility for the civilian population…” Yona said out loud. “Now that I think about it, the amount of the write-off has been going up the last few years. Does Kan Su-jin not care of his land falls into ruin?”

“A bigger question is why he keeps asking for a larger and larger write-off.” Yun pointed out, worried. “There hasn’t been any talk of the border being dangerous.”

“…I guess Fire supported Su-won in his coup, or is preparing for a play of their own.” Yona proposed, looking down. “They were the Tribe of the previous dynasty…and his second son Tae-Jun was always bothering me, before Hak became my guard.”

“Zeno’s more impressed that Yuhon managed to expel the priests completely from the castle. There’s been times when their influence was low, but when he expelled them, that’s the first time Hiryuu Castle has been without a priest, literally. It had been the shrine of the Crimson Dragon God before Ou-sama descended and founded Kouka.” Zeno said, changing the subject. “Yuhon was never good at making friends and influencing people, even if he could play nice. Then again, old Ju-nam spent his last years ensuring Il’s ascension until the Miss was old enough, so he might have seen the priests as an acceptable sacrifice to achieve that.”

Ik-su nodded. “There were some grumbles, about Prince Yuhon getting his way, but the feeling was that if it would help bring the ascension of Yona-hime, then it was worth it.”

“’Your husband will be the next King.’” Yona murmured. “That’s what Father said, when he mentioned me getting engaged and I brought up Su-won as my fiancé. If Father knew Grandfather’s intentions, why didn’t he share them with me? Why didn’t he prepare me more? You said Father spoiled me, Zeno, in part to protect me from the truth of who I’d…but it’s like my only role was to legitimize his choice of heir. Shouldn’t he still have prepared me for the idea of ruling?”

“I don’t know what Il was thinking. I’m unchanging, not a mind reader. The best Zeno can guess is that he may not have been concerned about preparing you because of Ou-sama.” He said with a sigh. “He can’t say anything about the land that was given away either, except that everything he gave away was outside Kouka’s traditional borders.”

 _Why did Father put so much faith in me being Hiryuu-ou’s reincarnation?_ Yona wanted to ask, but that was too close to admitting the truth that she struggled to accept, so she said nothing, instead asking, “So who are we going for first?”

“Hakuryuu. As the only Village to have never moved, he’s the easiest to find. And Zeno’s sure he’ll pitch a fit if he’s not ‘first’. Ryokuryuu has to be last.” He said, opening a bundle to reveal a feast in miniature.

“Zeno…” Yona found herself chiding, as she spotted her favorites.

Zeno wagged a finger at her. “Let Zeno treat the Miss for her birthday, even if it’s late. He hasn’t given you a gift since the stuffed crimson dragon.”

“That was you?!” She exclaimed, as Yun stopped drooling long enough to grab the few dishes he and Ik-su had.

“I think I’m missing something here.” Yun commented as everyone started loading their dish, eyeing Raiju and wondering if he would need to defend the feast.

“My favorite toy as a child was this stuffed crimson dragon. I carried it everywhere with me. I had to put it away when I was eight, because it had gotten so threadbare that I was afraid it would fall apart. It’s in the corner of the room I usually slept in. To be honest, I always thought Mother had made it…” Yona admitted at the end, laying out bits of each food item for Raiju, not sure what he would eat beyond the meat bun filling.

“Zeno doesn’t care who you thought made it; it just felt right, making that and giving it to you.” He explained, as Raiju took everything but a spiced pork that Yona remembered Hak hating as much as she loved it.

* * *

That night, three young men dreamed of a cat wrapped in lightning, staring at them like it was standing in judgment on them.


	4. Chapter 4

Yona stood in the middle of the lonely, empty road, and took a deep breath in. “The air seems really fresh, without all the competing incenses and perfumes of everyone in the castle.” She commented.

“Just wait until we pass a latrine pit, or a rotting animal.” Yun said, putting a slight damper on her mood. “Wait, so did—does everyone wear perfume or incense?”

“Pretty much. With the most ornate outfits, that are only wore a couple times a year, they’re scented to deter bugs, and to keep them from smelling musty after so long in storage. With everyday clothes, different scents are appropriate for different seasons, depending on gender, age, social position…its worse in summer, since some people just sweat more. All those scents, combined with body odor…” Yona grimaced. “But the incense used in the shrine room, for the Feast of the Crimson Dragon God, is the worst! I can’t picture anyone liking it, human or god. But every year, it’s still burnt, because of ‘tradition’ and ‘precedent’.”

“You mean the one made with an ingredient from the lands of every Tribe?” Zeno asked. “It’s not actually incense; it was intended to be, but since it stunk so bad and turned out to be really good at deterring bugs…” He shrugged as Yona switched the shoulder she was leaning Hak’s polearm on, Raiju leaping onto that shoulder and nuzzling the bandage on her neck. “Nya.”

“It’s alright; you didn’t intend to hurt me.” Yona told him, rubbing back with her cheek, since his nya sounded remorseful.

“Dare I say I’m impressed with our pace? Even with hauling that polearm with us…” Yun noted, a little sheepish as he said that.

Granted, he had fully expected Yona to have dropped hours ago, within half an hour of leaving Ik-su.

“Lad, Hiryuu Castle is HUGE!” Zeno exclaimed. “Zeno thought so when he served Ou-sama there, and it’s only gotten bigger. The total area that constitutes the ‘castle’ is measured in miles.”

Yona nodded in agreement. “Someone measured all the hallways, and it added up to something like twenty miles of hallways. It’s not like I was cloistered to one section; when my tutors got frustrated with my energy, they would send me off to run laps of the corridors to tire me out. Hak would cheat when we raced, since he could climb over things that I couldn’t in my skirts.” She pouted at the end. “So I’m used to walking all over the castle.”

“Still, we should stop soon, so Zeno can start teaching the Miss archery.” He commented. “He should also teach both of you how to escape holds.”

Yun eyed the position of the sun. “So in an hour we’ll start looking for a good spot to stop for the night. It doesn’t look like there’s a chance of rain…”

Conversation lapsed after that comment. Briefly Yona dared to take a hand off the polearm to scratch at the strap of the woven straw hat she was wearing. There was a cloak in the pack, and Yun for some reason had a bag big enough for her to fit in, but her hair was short enough that she could get away without a cloak. She internally shuddered as another drip of sweat rolled down her spine. _And to think I thought wearing two layers of damask silk in the height of summer was terrible…but complaining won’t change a thing._

Beyond the physical discomfort (and disgust) at feeling the layer of sweat on her back, and the way every part of her body ached, the part that hurt the most was having to remember that Hak wasn’t there.

Couldn’t be there.

He wasn’t there to distract her from her aches, to tease her about sweating like a troll enough to make her mad enough to chase him.

She never realized just how much a part of her day and her life he was until he was no longer able to be a part of it. She still felt that familiar, watchful gaze, and she knew it wasn’t Yun (whom wasn’t familiar-feeling at all, or overly watchful) or Zeno (whose familiar and watchful gaze was tinged with sorrow and regret on her end, and nostalgia on his).

The best she figured was that the gaze was coming from Raiju, reinforcing the belief that Hak had send him to look after her, keeping his promise to Father and whatever other reasons he had for protecting her, like Zeno had implied.

“Zeno votes we stop near the creek!” She visibly jolted at Zeno’s outburst.

With a shrug, since Yun didn’t particularly care what kind of pace they had as long as they avoided people, he set his pack down, pulling out a water flask and handing it to Yona. “Regardless of how used you are to walking, you aren’t used to the dust of the road.” He said in lieu of explanation.

Raiju, Yun, and Zeno traded looks with each other as Yona drained the flask in one go. They would need to keep an eye on her, and make her take breaks, even if they framed as their own desire for one. “Tomorrow Zeno will carry Mister’s weapon for a while, and give your arms a break after your first archery lesson.”

She nodded as she leaned it carefully against a tree, Raiju leaping down as well. “Now, Zeno has to ask,” He began as he held the quiver in front of him. “Are you sure? It’s another step away your father’s wish for you to never hold weapons. Do you think you can aim to kill?”

“…I don’t know…” She admitted quietly, staring at the quiver. She was so far from being able to really use Hak’s weapon that the thought of using it the way he did didn’t feel real, but this was real and solid in front of her. “But I won’t know if I don’t try, and even if all I can do is buy some time to escape…”

“Just keep in mind that Il’s disdain of weapons was not because of cowardice, but from the disdain of the harm they can bring to the world.” Zeno said, not unkindly, as he set the quiver in her hands.

* * *

Yona just glared tiredly at her latest arrow, which had done loops instead of going straight at the bird. “Just what am I doing wrong?” She complained, beyond fed up.

“Are you thinking about where you want the arrow to go, or is the Miss just firing and hoping to hit something?” Zeno asked as he stepped over, guiding her arms to the right position. “For now, focus on drawing back strong enough, and on the arrow flying straight. Once you can do that, worry about where you want the arrow to go.”

They fired together, but the arrow still missed the bird.

It flew straight, though. “That spiel would be better if you could back it up with skill.” Yun deadpanned, starting a fire.

“Zeno’s out of practice!” He protested.

“Nyao!” Yona looked down at her feet at Raiju’s somewhat muffled nyao.

He laid a bird at her feet, purring and looking very pleased with himself. “Showoff.” She complained as Yun fussed over Raiju. “Good kitty! You’ll keep us—“

“MROW!” Raiju protested, swiping at Yun’s hand and darting behind Yona with the bird.

“He’s not a kitty, Yun.” Yona scolded. “He’s a fearsome hunter cat.”

She scooped Raiju up, bird and all. “If you want the meat you need to apologize.”

“Apologize to a cat?!” Yun exclaimed, jumping at the loud hiss he received. “Okay! I’m sorry I called you ‘kitty’! Won’t happen again!”

One anxious moment for Yun later, and Raiju imperiously walked over to Yun and gave him the bird.

 _Is it me, or do this bird’s feathers seem frizzled?_ Yun thought to himself as he began the process of preparing the bird, Yona sitting down and watching even as she turned pale at the sight of the insides of a bird.

* * *

Finished with her portion, Yona leaned against a tree and closed her eyes.

Within seconds she was snoring. “I’ll make sure to suggest breaks tomorrow.” Yun commented as he started cleaning up, “I know she was pushing herself, but I hadn’t expected her to fall asleep that quickly…”

“The Miss is stubborn.” Zeno replied, helping Yun. “Did you notice, how she seemed to look for the Mister?”

“Yeah…she said they ‘absolutely’ are not lovers, were not lovers, but I’m doubting that.” Yun remembered, Raiju curling up in Yona’s lap.

“They weren’t. Zeno was watching, remember? But he was her personal guard for three years. No matter where she went, he was close by. When you add in how sudden his death was, and on the heels of Il’s death and Su-won’s betrayal…She’s a ship without an anchor, searching for a point to tie up on. Maybe she’ll become as close to her dragons, to where they can be her safe harbor. For now, Raiju is a temporary mooring point.” Zeno explained, settling down near her. “Plus learning the truth.”

“I think she’s avoiding that for now, because shouldn’t she have questions?” Yun asked, pulling out the map. “But where did Raiju come from? His coat’s too shiny and clean for him to be a stray, but he caught that bird, and he’s too affectionate with Yona to have been abused…”

“There’s something special about him. Maybe the Mister sent him to her, when she was at her lowest, to do what he couldn’t anymore.” Zeno eyed Raiju as Yun studied the map, Raiju meeting his gaze before flicking his tail and closing his eyes.

Humming, Yun said, “I’m guessing a week until we reach Hakuryuu Village. Might be longer if it rains or we have to detour around too many towns.”

Digging through the pack Zeno had been carrying, Yun pulled out the blanket. Carefully, he eased it around Yona’s shoulders. “Hak…”

Yun and Zeno froze as she shifted. “…warm…” She didn’t wake up, but settled back and remained asleep.

“Zeno will be brushing up on his archery on the other side of the clearing for a bit, so good night Lad.” He told Yun as he pulled out his huge bag and slid into it like a sleeping bag.

“Why do you call me ‘Lad’? I mean, I know you’re as old as Kouka, but you don’t look that much older than me…” Not getting an answer, Yun settled down for the night as Zeno picked up the quiver and went to do as he said.

Once he was sure the lad was asleep as well, he came back over, crouching down by Yona. “You’re him, aren’t you? But you’re not a regular cat, Zeno’s sure of that…” He muttered. “Mister seemed like a normal person, even with being a strong fighter…”

Raiju’s eyes opened, glittering in the darkness, showing he hadn’t been asleep. Meeting Zeno’s gaze, moments passed until Zeno nodded. “I’ll stay quiet, and leave it up to you to reveal yourself to the Miss. But for her sake, don’t do it until you’re sure of a chance to do something similar to what you did before.” Zeno’s eyes and face held a grim promise left unvoiced.

Equally grim, Raiju nodded, returning to his doze as Zeno stood and went back to his archery practice. _I never expected to need this again, or the sword arts Ou-sama tried teaching me, but…_ In his mind’s eye, he remembered the figure he had glimpsed in the courtyard, blood splattered and stone-faced as he watched his cousin’s impending death.

Only this time, the arrow he drew and aimed flew true, thudding into the tree behind the vision’s head. _I knew he wasn’t as much his mother’s son as he pretended, but I never dreamed that I may have to bestow on the son the fate that befell the father…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kinda thought that putting Yona in Hak’s clothes would’ve gotten some comment… (shrug) 
> 
> Yes, cats can, in fact, catch birds. It’s harder than with rodents, but they can catch birds. 
> 
> If no one’s noticed, I’m pretty sure I’m bad at concealing things from the reader if I start hinting at them. Because I’m pretty sure everyone caught what I was hinting at. But don’t say what you caught, for those who might not have gotten it. It’s just too much fun hints things for the reader to wait for the characters to realize. 
> 
> Spoiler for Drawn: I’ve decided who the next person to die at Yona’s hand will be. It’s a terminal case of pissing off the wrong person.


	5. Chapter 5

“Hey Zeno?” Yona asked. “You’ve seen the others, right? What are they like?”

“Zeno visited each of them when the Miss was born, but much like the Miss, this is the first time Zeno’s left the castle since then.” He replied.

“…I see…” She commented quietly, twirling the long stick they were using to teach her the basics of staff fighting, the first step to using Hak’s weapon (beyond actually being able to swing the thing without falling over). “Do you know, how they…?”

“Not really. Zeno never interacted with the villages or the dragons over the years. But Hakuryuu Village seemed to have a positive viewpoint. But,” He said as he sat down. “This isn’t about them liking you, is it?”

She flushed, not looking at him. “Do you…do you think…Su-won ever cared about me? About us?” She whispered, a hand moving to stroke the new scars on her neck, their angry red hidden under the other of Hak’s black stripes of cloth. “When he talked, about Father killing Uncle…I don’t know how I missed that anger. I really thought he cared for Father, but then he—he was going to stand there, and watch me be killed, for ‘the good of the kingdom’. Did I ever mean anything to him? Was I ever even a sister to him, or an annoyance, or something not worth the effort? Hak had said that he had heard guards in on the plot saying they just had to worry about him. Did I really mean that little to him, to where my life and death was of little concern to him? He knew what Hak and I expected for the future; did none of that matter? If he did have problems with how Father was doing things, why didn’t he come to us, and get our help?”

“…I think,” Zeno started. “It’s not a matter of not caring, but a matter of being able to discard everything for a higher goal. I had overheard worrying things, but none of the problems I heard seemed great enough to warrant kingslaying. Some people, they can toss aside bonds with other people easily, because for that person, personal ties are not more important than whatever their goal is. How would you have acted, in his place? Learning your father was killed by his brother, and watching your uncle and king seemingly not caring as the kingdom fell to ruin?”

Yona sat down next to Zeno, Raiju appearing and settling in her lap. “I would at least have trusted Hak, and talked to him about it. Su-won and Hak…they were always so close. Even when they got older and Hak insisted on using formalities and all…I was always so jealous of their bond. But I guess, that in the end, we weren’t important enough to be of any help.” She finally answered.

“So if you were in his position, you wouldn’t act as he did, and end up cutting off ties with them?” He asked.

“Even if, as I think Su-won had been hoping, we never discovered his crime, the knowledge would weigh on my soul. I could never sacrifice the people important to me, even for revenge.” She declared, letting the low purr Raiju was making relax her. “I don’t know what to do, once we’ve found everyone. I just know that I will not follow his path, and kill him for the throne.”

“Snap, here I was hoping to storm a castle together.” Zeno said with a slight smile. “So you don’t want him dead?”

“…I don’t know. I think that I should, but the cycle of bloodshed has to end somewhere, and Father wouldn’t want that, but everything’s a tangled mix of love and grief and outrage so I don’t know if sparing him would be the moral high ground or giving into my feelings.” She hugged Raiju to her, him nuzzling her neck.

“What do you think the mister would want?” He asked.

“He’d want to kill Su-won himself.” She replied immediately.

“Zeno can’t tell you which is the best thing to do. Just that he’ll support you the best way he can.” Standing, he stretched out a hand to help her up. “Let’s see what the lad cooked up for us tonight. Zeno thinks we should reach Hakuryuu Village tomorrow.”

* * *

“Oi, White Snake.”

Kija bristled. “How dare you compare the holy dragon to a SNAKE?!” He roared.

The black-haired man rolled his eyes. “Don’t get so worked up; teasing is my hobby, after all.”

They were perched in a large tree, looking down on a camp of three people. A boy, a youth who might be a boy, and a girl with crimson hair. She slipped out from under her blanket, picking up the quiver next to her. Walking a few paces away, she drew the bow and began shooting arrows. “Her father would be rolling over in his tomb, if he saw this.” The black-haired man commented, scratching the ears of a cat with fur the same color as his hair.

“Why is she doing that? She has us to protect her.” Kija wasn’t sure why he was saying that, but knew it was true regardless.

“She can’t forgive her helplessness, and she thinks that by becoming strong, she’ll balance the scales somehow, and make my death worth her life.” He said. “All she has to do is live; I would give all of my lives, real and metaphorical, to save her.”

“As would I.” Kija assured him.

“You better not be sacrificing yourself for her.” The man scolded, the cat mirroring the look of anger on his face. “She won’t survive someone else dying for her, and I might not be able to stop her, next time.”

Then they were standing next to her. As the man clucked his tongue and made minor adjustments to her form, Kija’s eyes were glued to the parallel, angry red lines on her neck. “Does she not know her worth?” He breathed, full of disbelief as the implications of the lines hit him.

“It’s not a question of knowing her worth; it’s a question of believing in her worth. That bastard has no idea how much it hurt her, not having the balls to strike her down himself. Apparently, killing the girl who loves you wasn’t a worthy task for him to do personally.” Lightning crackled around them. “Even if he could stomach killing his king.”

The girl stopped at the sound of thunder, looking up at the sky, concerned. “No clouds…I didn’t imagine the thunder, right?” Retrieving her arrows, she apparently decided to end her practice early, and curled back up under her blanket, the cat joining her.

The man ghosted a hand over her unusually short hair, the look on his face a mix of love and pain. “Take care of her, because I’m not in a position to properly do that anymore, and I don’t know when I will be again.” He said quietly, meeting Kija’s eyes.

Kija nodded firmly. “On my honor as Hakuryuu, I will serve as her hand and her shield.”

* * *

Yona and Yun couldn’t help drawing closer to Zeno as the forest grew mistier. Soon it was so thick that Yona could hardly see Yun, despite him being on Zeno’s other side.

Then the voices started.

_Leave…_

_Leave…_

_…or face the wrath of the gods…_

“I don’t think much of a god willing to attack for simply treading into his territory.” Yona remarked lightly. “Especially one who can’t look me in the eye as he kills me.”

“Ohime-sama!” Yun hissed under his breath, as the mist suddenly cleared, revealing over a dozen archers, all aiming at them.

Her palms were sweaty, so Yona clenched her fists in her coat. As she was thinking of what to say, the leader, whose talking she had been ignoring, gasped. “Crimson hair!”

The phrase rippled through the others as he jumped down, crouching before them. “Young lady with crimson hair…from where do you hail?”

“The Land of Wind. The oracle instructed me to find the Four Dragon Warriors, and Ouryuu has been gracious enough to escort me and my companion to where he felt the presence of Hakuryuu.” Yona replied, falling back into the formal wording she had been trained to use for situations like this.

“An oracle…?”

“Ouryuu-sama?!” Eyes went to Zeno, who the archers felt was more likely to be Ouryuu (out of stwo unlikely choices).

Zeno stepped forward, the sunlight that did make it through the foliage hitting his amulet, sending another rippling murmur through the archers. “When they went their separate ways, Hakuryuu Guen asked for Ouryuu Zeno to visit him, one day. While his time has long since ended, I still came here to keep that promise, and to help the reborn Hiryuu-ou gather her Warriors together.” He said. _Seems like I won’t be keeping quiet about my true age…though with none of us looking particularly menacing, playing the Ouryuu card might be the only way forward without bloodshed._

The leader of the archers bowed his head. “Please forgive our indolence, Hiryuu-sama, Ouryuu-sama. Permit me to escort you and your companion to the village, where Hakuryuu-sama is.”

Only the experience of boring ceremonies and speeches kept Yona’s face even as she was called ‘Hiryuu-sama’. Nodding in reply to the leader’s decision, she forced herself to keep her breathing even, Raiju leaping into her arms.

As the other archers returned to their patrol, they followed the leader, still hovering close to each other.

* * *

Yona found herself trying to become one with Zeno as villagers crowded around her, seeking to glimpse her hair. Raiju, still in her arms, hissed, and to Yona’s surprise, there was the crackle of lightning, giving the crowd a shock and making them draw back and giving them all room to breathe. “Please excuse their eagerness. With crimson hair the mark of Hakuryuu-sama’s master, we cannot help but marvel at it. We mean no offence to your guardian raiju.” The leader of the archers, Ku-jan, apologized, as the crowd realized that by being farther back, more of them could glimpse her hair.

“Given the events that transpired before my arrival here, he is a little on edge.” She said, leaving aside the question of just what a ‘guardian raiju’ was (beyond the obvious).

“All of you are descended from the first Hakuryuu, right?” Yun asked. “What’s different about ‘Hakuryuu-sama’?”

“While all of us are descended from the first Hakuryuu-sama, only one person a generation inherits the power of Hakuryuu; the Dragon’s Arm.” Ku-jan explained. “I have sent a message to the Village Elder. Please wait here for her and Hakuryuu-sama, when we will learn for certain.”

“Learn WHAT for certain?!” Yun asked, panicked.

“Calm down lad. It’ll be fine. We can always run.” Zeno assured him, which didn’t really help.

“Zeno,” Yona chided, sitting down at the base of the huge tree in the middle of the village clearing. “Hakuryuu still has to decide to help me, remember?”

More reassured by Yona’s comment, Yun decided to start talking to one of the villagers who found reasons to loiter at the edge of the clearing.

“Sorry to out you, Zeno.” She apologized quietly.

“It’s alright Miss. Zeno had been thinking that would be the only way to get into the village without bloodshed or sneaking in.” He waved off the apology, sitting down next to her.

Raiju was lounging on the ground in front of them, apparently just lazily enjoying the sun, but his eyes were sharp, and his ears were twitching. It reminded her of how Hak would do much the same thing; apparently napping, but in truth very alert, the few times she tried to pull a prank on him while in that state.

For some reason, the memory of the last time that happened, which had ended with her pinned and with Hak’s full body length pressed against her, rose up, and with it a rush of heat, not just to her face, but lower too, to that place she would touch when she imagined her wedding night. “S-so what is a guardian raiju?” She asked, determined to get her mind off that memory and the weird reaction it was causing.

“Sometimes, a raiju cat can take a special liking to a person, and so hang around them and guard them from anything it deems a ‘threat’. It’s an old story; Zeno hasn’t heard it in a long time.” He explained. “It’s easier for raiju cats to be on Earth, so their stories are a touch more common than other supernatural beings.”

Yona suddenly stood, full of nervous energy. “I think he’s almost here.” She commented, turning away from the direction something was approaching from, hunching in on herself.

“You can feel him?” Zeno asked, curious, since Hiryuu-ou had never show any sign of feeling his Dragon Warriors the way they felt each other.

“You there!”

 _He doesn’t sound happy…_ Yona thought, not realizing how her hair had been hidden by her hat when she hunched her shoulders.

Breathing in deep, she turned to face the source of the voice.

It was a young man, maybe around Hak’s height, with white hair and pretty blue eyes. A faint blush dusted his cheeks when their eyes met.

There was a pulse, like a heartbeat, and the young man grabbed his right arm as she grabbed at her heart. The fire that had burned when she confronted Kan Tae-Jun in the cliffs filled her, burning hotter in her right arm as she squeezed her eyes shut against the pain.

* * *

“Ah, I was hoping I could reach you, during the awakening.”

Yona jumped, whirling around to face the voice.

It was a man, dressed in older fashion robes, crimson hair reaching to his waist.

She knew exactly who it was, even without the painful familiarity that stabbed her when she saw his face and met his eyes. “You’re…”

Hiryuu-ou smiled at her, much like her father had smiled at her. The way Su-won had once seemed to smile at her. “It was very close thing, you remembering anything from me.”

“What do you mean?” She asked, noticing now that they were in one of the palace courtyards, the one with all the wisteria trees, in full bloom.

“Once a person reaches sixteen, it generally becomes impossible for them to remember their past life. But with everything that happened, and the fire beginning to burn, Zeno approached you right before that narrow, extended window closed for good.” He explained, sitting on her—their—favorite bench. “He was the trigger.”

“Is that why my mind made the jump, to…” She trailed off as she sat next to him. “After Ik-su told me the prophecy?”

He nodded. “Not that the prophecy matters that much. Prophecies are only revealed when the gods wish for a certain outcome to happen. Still, prophecy or not, you seeking out your Warriors would have happened regardless.”

“They’re not mine.” She countered, almost on reflex. “I don’t deserve to be anyone’s master, to have Warriors who want to die for me.”

“Do you really think, when Hak agreed to become your guard, the possibility of giving up his life to save you never crossed his mind?” He asked. “That it never crossed Father’s mind?”

“Huh?” She asked with a blink.

“I’m limited in what I can see from inside of you, but I saw enough to realize that Father had noticed idiot Tae-Jun annoying you.” Yona ogled at hearing the mythical Hiryuu-ou call someone an idiot. “He had been asking Hak that since you turned twelve. Both of them knew that once you were legally old enough to be engaged and married, there existed the chance that someone could attack you and rape you, forcing you into a marriage outside of your or Father’s control. No matter what the castle matron had showed you.”

She didn’t know what to say, just staring at the ground. “…even if what you’ve said is true, I still made him take with me him, and go to Ik-su like Mun-dok suggested.”

“If he truly wanted you to stay in Fuuga, he would have left during the night.” He pointed out, with a bizarre, knowing look that she didn’t understand. “But as enjoyable as it would be to tease you about Hak, there’s more important things I have to tell. Time might be standing still right now, but I can’t keep that up indefinitely.”

Standing, he moved to crouch down in front of her. “Don’t worry about trying to be like me. I didn’t decide to be reborn in order to do that. All you need to do is be yourself.”

“But I’m not sure who I am anymore!” She protested. “I have no right to call myself Princess of Hiryuu Castle, let alone of Kouka, when I scarcely know anything! I’m spoiled, and selfish, and weak, and…” She started crying, and he pulled her down off of the bench and into his arms. “Even if I don’t worry about trying to be like you, others will still expect that. I don’t want to disappoint them, after countless generations of waiting and longing.”

“Let them worry about their expectations and hopes; you worry about learning to fight. If she had lived, Mother would have taught you. It’ll be hard, and it’ll feel like you’re not making any progress at all, but one day, when it matters most…you’ll realize that you have become strong.”

Gently pushing her back, he wiped the tears from her eyes. “Now that I’ve reached you once, I might be able to do so again. So go find them, the one who doesn’t realize that he’s waiting, and the one who openly scorns his waiting while secretly hoping it will end. And tell Zeno…tell Zeno that if I could have, I would have returned sooner. But everything had to be in the right alignment, and I wanted Father and Mother to be my parents again, and I was scared to see him again, since I never found the courage or the words to tell him the truth.”

She opened her mouth, to ask one of the endless questions she had, but then he kissed her forehead. As everything went white, Hiryuu-ou’s kind smile was the last thing to fade into white.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise the next thing I post will be a chapter of Drawn? Or Sunny Days? I've been in a mood for a while, between work and job hunting and finances. And work decided to appoint a new manager (finally) and not tell me until two days before she officially takes over.


	6. Chapter 6

Opening her eyes, Yona saw that hardly any time had passed, as Hiryuu said, and watched Hakuryuu hit the ground unconscious, his dragon arm smoking and charred. “Is he alright?” She asked, rubbing at the pain in her chest, where she could feel the past Hakuryuu, rejoicing.

_How do I know that for certain?_

Yun slid his bag under Hakuryuu’s head, and went to try and examine the burnt dragon arm, only to jerk back with a muttered curse. “It’s really hot! Hotter than any fever I’ve felt.”

“It’s because the center that the dragon’s blood rotates around is a fire dragon; that instructs the rest of the blood bond.” Zeno explained, crouching down and poking at the clawed hand, ignoring the small burn and Yona’s frown. “And it wasn’t just this Hakuryuu reacting; all of his predecessors reacted too. That’s the only thing that explains the burns. They should be healed by evening.”

* * *

Kija groaned as he regained awareness of himself and those around him. There was the sun-bright Ouryuu presence that, now that he thought back, he had felt near the strange presence he had approached.

Now that his blood had resumed its normal course and the fire dampened, the strange presence attached to the crimson-haired girl turned a shade to match her hair, and there was a tangle of feelings. Pain, worry, concern, anxious hope, sadness…

He could poke through the tangle later. For now, he had to wake up and acknowledge his master.

* * *

Yona could feel her heart leave her throat as Hakuryuu (finally) opened his eyes. “…Hakuryuu?” She asked, tentatively.

“Yes, I am Hakuryuu, Right Hand of the Crimson King. I have long awaited this day, my master.” Hakuryuu answered, bowing low.

“’Master’?” She repeated under her breath as the rest of the Hakuryuu villagers joined his bow.

Rising from the bow, Hakuryuu looked at her the same way the maids would look at Hak, when they huddled behind a corner and peeked at him practicing in just his pants.

Sure, they did the same thing with Su-won, but that hadn’t bothered her.

Around them, the villagers were cheering. “Y’know, the whole ‘Right Hand of the Crimson King’ thing didn’t start until like a hundred years after their deaths, so you’ve got a ways to go before claiming it.” Zeno commented, lacing his fingers behind his head.

“Zeno,” Yona chided.

“May I inquire as to your name, my m-lord?” Somehow, Kija kept ‘master’ on the tip of his tongue, having felt a pulse of irritation and pure panic when he used it before.

“Yona.” She said simply. She had been Crown Princess by virtue of being her father’s heir presumptive, and while she guessed she would be Su-won’s heir by default, should he learn of her survival, she could hardly call herself ‘Princess’ based on that, a prophecy and a hair color.

Hakuryuu was gorgeous, in the way the tales always said dragons and gods in human form were. Something told her that it was as much vanity on the part of the White Dragon God as it was the nature of the dragon’s blood.

Zeno was too used to deflecting and obscuring his true nature to fully show the radiance he gained after drinking the dragon’s blood.

“You’re gorgeous.” She told Hakuryuu.

“Ah! Not as gorgeous as you.” He protested, feeling a jolt of disbelief before it was overcome with a serious sadness.

“Hakuryuu, I don’t know what expectations have accompanied all those generations of waiting, but I’m sure that I am no match for them. Learning that Hiryuu-ou and his Dragon Warriors were real was shocking enough, let alone that I…” She trailed off, shaking her head before continuing. “I’m not strong or clever or brave. I am as far from being a King as a peasant in the fields. What I am, is someone stubbornly fighting to survive, after losing every familiar thing I could have clung to, and one selfish enough to seek any power that will help me to survive, and maybe protect those I hold dear.” She knelt down on the grass, ignoring the gasps from Hakuryuu and the crowd. “So I am asking, not ordering; will you lend me your strength in this endeavor? Will you be the hand holding me steady as I stumble towards an undecided goal and uncertain future?” _Gods, I don’t know what answer terrifies me more…_

That tangled knot of emotion resolved into a duality: anxious hope that he will agree, and anxious terror over his agreement. With it was an abyss of grief, deep enough to drown in.

Still, that crimson presence was stubbornly keeping its head above the grief. Taking a deep breath, Kija weighed his answer, hoping it would relieve some of that anxiety while still being true. “Any expectations I have held crumble before the all-encompassing expectation that Hiryuu-ou-sama would return, one day. Accepting the goals of my master is something that never feels to be an issue. So no matter if you seek my strength to crush your enemies, or to bear you to steady ground, it is yours.” He declared. The draconian urge to protect, frustrated in protecting the village, seemed to have latched onto Yona-sama, as much as because of the dragon’s blood as because of the fragility that made it seem like she would shatter with the slightest blow.

Yona nodded her acceptance. It wasn’t quite the statement of independent thought she had hoped for, but she was too scared of alienating this comrade to press the point.

* * *

Kija sat in his room, breathing heavily. He still felt unnaturally hot, and his dragon arm ached.

Not only that, his heart ached, much as Hime-sama’s heart was. “The stories never said anything about Hiryuu-ou-sama being felt by his warriors, let alone them being able to sense his emotions…” He muttered out loud. _Even with the outer covering of calm and vague contentment, there’s still this…pit, of grief and loss. That at any moment could break through._

“That’s cuz he couldn’t.”

Turning his head, Kija watched Ouryuu enter. He thought his name was Zeno. “Does your village’s stories tell you for sure?” He asked.

Ouryuu shook his head. “Ouryuu Village has never existed. The closest thing would have been the village Zeno was born in, but that turned to dust so long ago that you would never guess people had lived there. That’s because Zeno’s power is different from the rest of the Dragons.”

“What do you mean?” Kija asked, baffled, as Zeno crouched down next to him.

“Ouryuu’s the oddball, without any real power. But when the power does trigger…its strength can equal Hakuryuu and Ryokuryuu. It might even exceed their strength combined, Zeno doesn’t know.” Somehow Zeno seemed older then he looked.

“What IS Ouryuu’s power? Our stories don’t say anything that isn’t said in the stories of the outside.” Kija asked directly, starting to get annoyed with his dragon brother’s dodging of the real question.

“Eternity.” Zeno said simply. “I could show you, but to get the full effect it has to be a major injury, but that would leave evidence and bother the Miss. ‘Unbreakable shield’ doesn’t mean that nothing can hurt Zeno, but that Zeno can recover from anything. There hasn’t been an injury inflicted on Zeno that has left any sign, and he’s immune to other things that could kill a person: heat, cold, thirst, hunger…and old age. Zeno’s the only Ouryuu there’s ever been.”

“You fought with the first Hakuryuu?! And Hiryuu-ou-sama?!” Kija exclaimed, hearts in his eyes.

“Not really; Ou-sama kept me out of the fighting, or looking after Seiryuu once he became vulnerable. Which leads into the reason Zeno came up to talk to you.”

“?”

“You’ll be our main fighter, at least until we see what Seiryuu and Ryokuryuu are like. I’ll stick close to the Miss and the Lad, Yun. I’m powerless until I’ve been seriously injured, so that means I had to learn how to end things very, very quickly. And leaving a trail of bodies behind us is asking for trouble.” Zeno informed him, shifting so he was sitting down properly. “Zeno knows sword arts and archery and other ways of fighting, but since he can’t train his body, there’s a limit to how useful they are. Zeno’s…not a nice person, especially in a fight. And until the Miss is trained up more…” He shrugged.

“You’re teaching Hime-sama to fight?!?!” Kija screeched, angry. “She shouldn’t need to, not with—“

“It’s only sheer luck and maybe divine protection that kept her alive until Zeno joined her. She has already lost someone close to her, who died because he took an arrow meant for her, when she froze.” Zeno said sternly. “She refuses to stay that way, stuck frozen in terror while people fight and die around her. Her goal is to use the guandao one day, but for now, carrying it all day is her strength training, while evening is archery and basic fighting. We’re not lugging it around for kicks. You’re right; she shouldn’t need to fight. But after seeing her father murdered and his throne stolen by someone she trusted, it’s not a choice available to her anymore. And most importantly of all, she wants to.”

Zeno leaned in close to Kija’s face. “So if you make any negative comments about it around her, I will rip your precious dragon arm off and beat sense into you. Is that clear?”

“Yessir!!!” Kija replied, not doubting Zeno’s ability to carry out his threat.

“MROW!!!” A black cat poked its head out of a vase, lightning sparking around it as it agreed with Zeno. “And then Raiju will claw your eyes out, if his lightning hasn’t killed you first.” Zeno added.

“Wait, how long has he been in here?” Kija asked, as Raiju slipped out of the vase. The cat was annoying familiar, but he couldn’t place where.

“He came in with Zeno. What are you poking around for?” Zeno directed the question to Raiju, who had leapt up onto the window ledge.

Flicking his tail, Raiju jumped out of the window. “He’s…Hime-sama’s?” Kija asked cautiously. “I didn’t think raiju existed anymore.”

“He helped the Miss when she was at her lowest, and he’s not inclined to leave her alone. Zeno guesses that the villagers are leaving the Miss alone, if he’s exploring.” He said as he stood. “Let’s go back to the Miss and the Lad.”

The harsh, protective sternness vanished, along with that sense of age, leaving behind a bright teenager. “It’s a bit scary, how you’re doing that.” Kija commented. “Going from stern and serious to bright and cheerful.”

“Being serious all the time is boring.” Zeno replied. “Zeno had been planning on being the cheerful one anyway.”

Kija’s questioning look was ignored as the pair returned to the clearing, and Yona and Yun.

* * *

Yona sat up in her futon, restless. The feast had been delicious, and she had been thankful to see that Hakuryuu Village believed in everyone eating at the same time. She had always hated that part of formal banquets, being surrounded by hungry people increasingly eying her food and watching for any sign that she was nearly done. A couple of admittedly bratty protests later changed that.

(Little did she know that Zeno had had a quiet word with Baa-Baa about that.)

The pain in her chest had faded, leaving behind something that brought to mind a white dragon, presently curled up in sleep.

Standing, she self-consciously retied her ribbon around her neck as she wandered outside. “Do you need anything, Hime-sama?” The guard asked.

“I’m just feeling a little restless, so is it alright for me to walk around the village?” She asked.

“Of course, Hime-sama! Should you wander past the edges of the village, the night patrolmen will guide you back.” The guard replied with a bow.

Nodding in reply, Yona started walking, taking in the quiet village, much as she had taken in the quiet(er) castle, when she had had restless nights before.

Without paying much attention, her feet led her to a spot somewhat isolated from the village while still in the edges. A heavy stone sat in front of an entryway carved into the mountain, a dragon carved on it.

Zeno was standing near it. “Zeno?” She asked, walking over to him.

She caught a glimpse of his hands touching his face before he turned to look at her. “Sleepless night?” He asked, his closed-eyed smile not quite distracting from the hint of tears.

“Yeah…” Stopping next to him, she just took in the mountain side. “…are all of them in there?” She asked, not quite sure what she was asking or why she was asking it.

“From what the Elder said, yes. All the way back to the first.” He replied.

Suddenly she pictured a different, white-haired man in her mind, his clothing making him look more like a nomad, but with kind eyes that were just like the present Hakuryuu’s. “Guen.” She whispered, feeling tears in the corner of her eyes. “Can you mourn for someone you’ve never meet personally and who has been dead for ages?” She asked.

“I think so.” He said.

“I saw him. When Hakuryuu was reacting to meeting me and the fire burned.” She confessed.

He furrowed his brow, confused, but then it hit him, the ‘him’ she was talking about. “You…you saw…?” His voice was disbelieving, yet hopeful.

“He said not to worry about trying to be like him; to let the warriors worry about their expectations. And something about how with what happened on my…and the fire lighting in the cliffs meant there was an extended window for me to remember, and that I saw you right before that window closed. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have remembered anything from him, and he wouldn’t have been able to reach me, when Hakuryuu and I met.” She explained. “And…he told me, to tell you, that…if he could have, he’d’ve come back sooner. But apparently Father and Mother were the reincarnations of his father and mother so he wanted them to be his parents again, and things had to align right…and he was scared, of seeing you again, since he could never find the words to tell you the truth of your power, or the courage to tell you.”

Zeno swallowed hard, silent tears falling. “He doesn’t need to explain why it took so long. And…I don’t think there was a gentle way, to tell me about my power.”

Yona held out her hand, and he latched onto it, interlacing their fingers and squeezing. “…did he say, if you’d see him again?”

“He said he might be able to reach me again, now that he did so once. He also said to just worry about learning to fight.” A giggle suddenly bubbled up. “He smiled at me the way Father had. Even though it was like looking in a mirror.”

Turning her head to look at Zeno, she was surprised to see his solemn eyes studying her face. “…it’s been too long. I don’t remember the exact details of his face.” He finally commented, a statement that made her heart ache. “But the color stuck with me, so I can say for sure that’s the same.”

Inside, with the white dragon, she suddenly felt the faint ghost of a yellow dragon, curled up with it. Pressing a hand to her chest, she closed her eyes, almost seeing it become more solid.

“Let’s go back to bed. The Lad will want an early start, tomorrow.” His voice distracted her, and the faint yellow dragon faded away.

Nodding, she kept holding his hand as they left behind the collective tomb of the past Hakuryuu.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...at least I posted to Sunny Days first? Lacking willpower to pull up the Yona scanlations for where I am in the story.


	7. Chapter 7

Yona sighed to herself as the fearsome White Dragon Warrior, Kija, had a complete and utter meltdown after sliding into a hole and (apparently) encountering bugs for the first time. “Hakuryuu-sama, just stay behind us and walk slowly.” Yun deadpanned, thoroughly unamused.

Yona had a sudden vision of the man she saw when in front of the Hakuryuu Tomb last night, Guen, reacting the same way, whirling around to try and throttle a man with a spear laughing his head off. His ponytail was green, but his name remained frustratingly out of reach.

“I think I can still feel them crawling on me…” Kija shuddered, shivering as he brushed the dirt from his clothes.

“Like Hakuryuu said, Seiryuu is to the east. Zeno thinks he’s close to the border in the mountains; there’s ruins there that are likely known to the Seiryuu Clan.” Zeno commented, crossing his hands behind his head. “Now, do we want to go to the trouble of taking care of those approaching bandits, or run?”

“How can you tell that? Their footsteps are not refined, true…” Kija questioned, Yun already stashing his bag in the bushes, and fruitlessly tugging on Yona to get her to hide too.

“There’s no cadence to the steps.”

“Zeno, can I use the bow?” Yona asked, raising her hand high.

“Yup! Now remember Hakuryuu, no dying!” Zeno said cheerfully, taking up near Yun in the bushes with Yona, to help her with aiming.

“I really hope Seiryuu and Ryokuryuu can fight…” Kija complained under his breath, even as Raiju scaled a tree and the bandits came into view.

* * *

Kija fell to one knee as the last bandit fled, his arm practically steaming. “I think I was overzealous in protecting Hime-sama…” He noted, panting a little.

“Nah, more like all your predecessors are as eager as you were. You just get stuck with the backlash.” Zeno countered, picking up a bag dropped by one of the bandits. “Though Zeno’s surprised Raiju flat-out shocked a few guys instead of going for the eyes.”

“Meow!” Raiju sounded smug.

“That’s too boring.” Yona translated. Between Yun and Zeno, she had gotten a couple of bandits on the arm, Yun proving to be the better of the two at directing her fire.

Zeno found a serviceable knife in the bottom of the bag. “Here lad.” He handed it over. “Zeno knows you likely won’t use it, but better for you to have the option.”

Yun eyed the knife like he would a snake, tucking it away at his waist. “We should pick our camp site for the night.” He commented.

“Huh? Camping?” Kija questioned, baffled. “There’s no inn or posting house?”

“Nope. This has never been near trade routes, and about the only valuable thing in the area is the trees, and even that really isn’t that valuable.” Zeno commented. “Why do you think we’ve got tents? And those places require money. Those are emergencies only.”

Thankfully, Hakuryuu Village had had a couple tents on hand, a smaller, two person one, and a larger one that could handle five adults, six if a couple were smaller.

Yona bit her lip at Kija’s face, willing herself not to laugh.

* * *

Yun went foraging for edibles, while Yona brought up something she had noticed that morning. “There’s something strange going on. Watch.”

Picking up the polearm, that Zeno had been carrying earlier, she very carefully let go with her left hand. Her right arm didn’t even tremble under the weight. Cautiously, she did a few slashes in the air. “I noticed it this morning, before Zeno took it.” Switching hands, her left arm trembled, but Zeno could tell that it took less effort then it had a couple days ago.

“How long have you been carrying it?” Kija asked, gesturing for Yona to pass the weapon to him so he could feel it himself.

While it naturally took little effort with his right arm, he folded quickly with just his left arm. “What kind of monster used this?!” He grumbled, handing it back.

“Someone who beat a man twice his size and three times his age when he was twelve.” Yona said wistfully, while Zeno frowned. “You need to work on the strength of your left arm, Hakuryuu. You’ll last longer if you do.”

“When mine and Kija’s eyes met, the fire burned, but it felt stronger in my right arm. Do you think that might have something to do with it?” Yona asked, as Yun, who had returned, shoved the fruits of his search at Zeno as he shoved her sleeve up and started examining her arm, moving it this way and that way.

“Maybe. When all of us drank the dragon’s blood, we were all in different places, and nowhere near Ou-sama. The miss does seem to have more of a presence, since meeting Hakuryuu.” Zeno pondered.

“I could feel something strange, near you, before I saw Hime-sama, but it only turned crimson afterwards.” Kija said as Yun shoved Yona’s other sleeve up, holding the arms next to each other.

“About the only thing I’m seeing is that the lower right arm might be a little paler then the left. Did you notice anything when you dressed this morning?” Yun asked, letting go of her arms.

“Nothing stood out to me, but I wasn’t really looking.” Yona replied in the negative.

“I’ll examine your arms again tomorrow, when we’re out of the forest and not near sunset.” Yun decided, as Raiju, who no one had noticed leaving, returned with a rabbit in his mouth.

Purring, he laid it at Yona’s feet. “Thank you Raiju, my fearsome hunter cat.” She praised, picking him up and hugging him close, actions that for some reason made Kija irrationally jealous of Raiju.

Zeno, who noticed it, smirked to himself as he grabbed Raiju’s kill to skin and prepare it as Yun set up his cooking area.

* * *

The presence of the rabbit meant that Kija only eyed Yun’s edible plants a little before his first bite. “You don’t have to hunt for us every night. The hunting won’t be good everywhere.” Yona told Raiju, who was washing his face after eating the parts of the rabbit Yun hadn’t used.

“He’s hunting for you, Ohime-sama.” Yun pointed out, finishing his portion and pulling out his map. “So both of you feel Seiryuu off to the east, while Zeno thinks he’s in the mountains?”

“How can you tell he’s that far away? There’s a sense of distance, but…” Kija asked, frowning as he closed his eyes and focused on the sky-blue presence in the east.

“Eh, about a thousand years or so ago Zeno got bored and decided to see how he could tell how far away the other dragons were. It helps that Zeno’s likely covered nearly the whole kingdom, so he has a mental map to judge the presences on. Boredom is also why you couldn’t tell Zeno was Ouryuu until he let you.” He answered.

“Our spies had placed Seiryuu Village in Earth for decades, but fourteen years ago they vanished, and they haven’t been able to find them again.” Kija said.

“Zeno remembers Yuhon being very angry that old Ju-nam wouldn’t let him search for the force that managed to slaughter soldiers without touching them, since it was one of his units. The slaughter was near where Zeno had felt Seiryuu until just before then, so the village likely moved as far away from the site as they could.”

Yona drooped a little, at the mention of her uncle and grandfather. “But how could Seiryuu have killed the soldiers without touching them?” She asked.

“Seiryuu’s power isn’t just seeing far. It can also paralyze people, killing by stopping their hearts. But if used too much, it lashes back onto Seiryuu, paralyzing him too. Ou-sama would have Zeno stick with Seiryuu, to get him off the battlefield when that happened, if he didn’t have a chance about Zeno staying behind.” Zeno’s eyes were distant as he watched the fire.

“Huh? Why would Hiryuu-ou-sama make you stay behind?” Kija asked, baffled as to why Hiryuu-ou-sama would keep one of his Warriors from doing his duty.

“He could never have lived with himself.” Yona spoke suddenly, hugging her legs and resting her head on her knees. “While he suspected the true extent, of what Yellow Brother had done, he couldn’t bear the chance that he was wrong, and end up having to watch Zeno sacrifice himself as a human shield. His human shield. But, even more than being wrong…he couldn’t bear the idea that he was _right_. That his worst fear of Ouryuu’s power was true.” Even though she was speaking in third person, her crimson presence had shifted, and it also seemed like someone else was speaking with her. “He hated people dying for him; that his life mattered more than theirs because of what he had been or because he was king.”

The other three traded looks as Raiju wriggled his way into her lap. “So we’ll set out for the mountains in the east tomorrow, yes?” Yun asked, as much to confirm their plans as to try and dispel the weird atmosphere.

“Yeah…there’s not enough room for either tent, so we’ll have to sleep in the open. Goodnight!” Zeno said cheerfully as he, Yun, and Yona settled down for the night.

“Good—wait we’re sleeping here?!” Kija screeched, but the others were either asleep or pretending to be, except for Raiju.

Kija shivered at how Raiju’s blue eyes seemed to glow in the darkness, staring at him. Shifting his position, Kija tried to at least rest.

* * *

“Kija! What happened to your face?!?!” Yona exclaimed in the morning, as Kija looked like death warmed over.

“Please excuse my indecency…” Kija mumbled, asleep on his feet.

Feeling something on his back, he jolted up straight, trying not to scream as Raiju climbed up onto his shoulder. “Raiju, leave Kija alone.” Yona scolded, picking him up and off of Kija.

Kija was sure the cat was mocking him.

* * *

“You don’t need to harass Kija like that.” She scolded with crossed arms.

“I’m not harassing, I’m teasing.” He complained. “Not my fault he’s not used to it.”

Thankfully, he didn’t look the way he had when she last saw him alive, bandaged and pale and sweaty. He was wearing the clothes Yun had re-purposed for her. “I feel like I’ll forget all of this, when I wake up.” She complained, looking down. “And I don’t want to.”

“But I don’t know when I’ll be able to change. I took physical form too soon after my death.” He explained gently. “So, until you realize in your conscious mind, what your unconscious self already knows…”

Darting forward, she wrapped her arms around his chest, hiding her face and her tears in his chest. “I’m sorry. I was stupid and not thinking and selfish.”

“Despair isn’t selfish. I’d do it again and again, every time.” He told her, returning her embrace. “…I didn’t think I mattered this much to you.” He admitted under his breath, but the nature of this encounter meant she still heard him. “I…I didn’t realize it either, not really. I always saw you as a friend, and about the one constant in my life, what I could always count on.” She said.

“I’m failing in that right now. I can’t distract you the way I did before. I can’t shield you the way I should; I have to trust in White Snake and Zeno.” He complained. “All I can do is make sure you’re fed and be a snuggle companion.”

“Those things are just as important.” She protested. Pulling back and looking at his face, an impossible thought crossed her mind, one she voiced. “Are you seriously complaining about getting your face shoved into my chest?”

He adverted his eyes, not confirming or denying it. Moving quickly, she raised up and pressed her lips against his’. Blushing, she pulled back, not quite believing her daring, even though they were literally alone.

It was her turn to advert her eyes as he stared at her, dumbfounded. “…I’ll have to die more often, if this is what I get.” He said, starting to blush himself.

“You die again and I will never do that again, no matter the state of existence.” She threatened with narrowed eyes, an effect ruined by her blush.

He smiled softly, the way he would when he visited the kitchen cat. Pulling her a fraction closer, he tucked her head under his chin.

She let him, continuing to cling to him even as the words she knew she should be saying stuck in her throat.

If he was bothered by the tears soaking his chest, he said nothing.

* * *

The young man known only as Seiryuu surveyed the camp that was in the mountain hills near his village. “Now, White Snake will probably never shut up about the Dragon Warriors without outside prompting, so if it gets to be too much, let one of the others know so they can distract him, alright?” A black haired man dressed in blue informed him, a black cat that seemed to be just like him in his arms.

“Yun’s the smartest person I’ve ever met, so he can likely answer all your questions. And don’t let Zeno be serious all the time. He had planned on being the cheerful one, but without me, he feels like he has to shoulder what should have been my burden, protecting Hime-san.”

They were looking in on the people sleeping in a large tent, with a girl near the opening, followed by a youth, the yellow dragon, and the white dragon. The man had pointed to everyone as he named them. The black cat leapt down from his arms and curled up near the head of the girl, ‘Hime-san’, as the man knelt down near her.

He crouched down as well, taking in the angry red lines on her neck. Ones that had come dreadfully close to killing her. The man ghosted a hand over them. “I had no time, to pull her arm away.” The man met the eyes of his mask, and it felt like they were meeting eye to eye. “The most important thing is to keep her from doing stupid things like that, or acting stupid.”

“I will keep her safe.” He said, sensing that a vocal answer was required.

“One last thing.” The man said. “At some point, she’ll likely come to you about learning how to use a sword. And she will get hurt and bleed. So don’t panic and stop or run away. It is a thousand times better to bleed a little in training, than to bleed out on the battlefield. If that’s something you don’t think you can handle, then tell her.” The man instructed him sternly.

He just nodded. Something about this girl made her reluctant to even think of her getting hurt, no matter in training or in actual battle.

* * *

“What is with Dragon Villages and mist?” Yun grumbled as they approached the ruins, which were covered in mist.

“I just hope they’ll listen to us…” Yona worried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I updated Drawn too, happy?


	8. Chapter 8

“You guys are sure Seiryuu’s here?” Yun quietly asked Kija and Zeno. “Cuz it doesn’t seem likely.”

None of the villagers had reacted to Yona’s hair, or when Kija announced himself. Yona and Zeno had talked their way in so they could ‘rest’, so hopefully they’d be able to make contact with Seiryuu and try to meet him outside the caves. “Why hasn’t he presented himself?!” Kija grumbled with a clenched fist.

“Zeno might be remembering wrong, but it felt like Seiryuu moved the most over the centuries. More than even Ryokuryuu. Depending on the circumstances of the moves, they might have lost a lot of the lore of the Dragon Warriors, and only really know that they have to hide Seiryuu.” Zeno remarked. “He’s close-ish, but Zeno doubts that a straight path exists in here.”

“Then let the pretty boy genius lead the way!” Yun cheered quietly.

* * *

“How many dead ends are there in here?!” Yun complained, after finding the fourth dead end. “With the air flow and the need to vent, there shouldn’t be this many.”

“He might be running. It’s hard to tell with all the tunnels, but he’s stayed roughly the same distance away from us.” Zeno commented, frowning at the dead end.

“I want to at least meet him. But if he’s running from us…” Yona pondered, Raiju sniffing the wall of the dead end.

“Don’t give up, Hime-sama! I’m sure Seiryuu’s been waiting anxiously, just like I have!” Kija pleaded.

“Kija, he might not know he has been waiting.” Yona pointed out quietly, grabbing Kija’s dragon hand with both of her own. “Your heritage has been positive for you, bar the waiting, and I’m happy for that. But that doesn’t mean that Seiryuu and Ryokuryuu will see it the same way. I know I would be dubious, if I was told that someday a person I’d never met might come and order me to serve them. I’d be terrified. I’m not asking you to be negative, just to remember that your positive experience might not be mimicked.”

“Zeno? Has being a Dragon Warrior been…” Kija travelled off, embarrassed that he never considered the idea that his brother dragons might fear and hate their legacy.

“…it’s been every emotion on the range. Now it doesn’t mean anything special. It’s fact, like the color of the sky and the rising of the sun.” Zeno replied, offhandedly, deflecting that how for most of his existence, it wasn’t something positive.

“Well, let’s move on. I keep feeling eyes on me.” Yun said as he shivered.

“Of course they’d be watching the strangers, lad.” Zeno reminded him, as he and Kija followed Yun back up the path.

Yona moved to follow, but a meow from Raiju made her stop. “What is it?” She asked.

Sniffing one patch of wall again, as if to confirm something to himself, Raiju placed his paws on that spot, triggering the opening of a hidden door. “Good job Raiju!” She praised quietly, as he darted into the darkness.

Yona followed Raiju down the dark corridor. “What did you find?” She asked, catching up to find Raiju staring at a completely adorable squirrel.

Squealing, she picked it up, hearts in her eyes. “You’re so adorable!!!”

“Nyao.” Raiju complained.

“Well I didn’t think you’d want to be called adorable. And look at this face! I know you can recognize adorable and not just see food!” She complained, pointing at the squirrel’s face.

The squirrel leapt into the darkness, where she could just see a figure. “Is that adorable little one yours?” She asked, taking a few steps closer as her eyes fully acclimated to the low light and she met the eyes of the mask.

There was a pulse, and then the fire raged, Yona grabbing at her head as her eyes burned. Despite his silence, she could feel that this young man, who could only be Seiryuu, was in as much pain as she was.

The pain and fire dying down, she stumbled forward, going sideways into the cave wall as Seiryuu closed the distance and caught her before she slid to the ground. “Are you alright?” She asked gently, the squirrel leaping onto Raiju’s back as he worriedly eyed her and Seiryuu.

His head tilted, and there was bafflement, like he didn’t know why she was asking about his well-being. “My name is Yona, and this is my cat Raiju. Or I’m his person; I heard a joke once that cats don’t have owners, just staff and now I’m rambling.” The hands on each of her upper arms helped to ground her, even as her eyes watered. “What’s your name?”

“…Seiryuu…” He said after a long moment.

“I mean your name. That’s…not your name…is it?” She asked, growing horrified that this village didn’t care enough about their dragon warrior as to even name him, blending all of them into a nameless, shifting person.

“…I don’t have a name. Just…Seiryuu…” The bafflement began to war with outright confusion and panic. “What was that?! Who are you?! Why are the white and yellow dragons—“ His mouth snapped shut, and she could tell that he wasn’t used to hearing his own voice, let alone it raising in volume.

She turned her arms as to lay her hands on his arms, and he jumped, making her heart ache at yet another disgrace in this village’s treatment of him, and his heart ached with hers’, despite the confusion as to her reaction. “Have you ever heard the story of how Kouka Kingdom was founded, ages ago?” She asked gently.

With the feeling of curiosity in her heart, she continued speaking. “The Crimson Dragon God descended to Earth, becoming human. He hated how so many people lived in fear, of being attacked, of losing their crops and livestock and families, to the whims of their lords. So, with his sword and his words, he united the various provinces together, where the people didn’t have to live in fear. His name as a human was Hiryuu-ou, the Crimson King of Kouka.

“But not everyone was happy with the idea of general peace. Either they profited too much from the suffering of others, or they were jealous of his successes, where they had failed. So, they joined together, and were able to take him prisoner. They were about to kill him, when divine light suddenly appeared. It was the other Dragon Gods. While they had not stopped him from descending, now they wanted to take him back to Heaven, and slaughter humans for lacking honor and faith and a whole bunch of other things.

“But Hiryuu…he knew that if he let his dragon brothers do as they wished, then every human would be slaughtered for the crimes of a few, breaking his vow to protect the people of his kingdom. So he refused. ‘I, too, am human now. Even if they hate me, and betray me, I cannot stop my love of them. Not only the ones near and dear to my heart, but all of them.’ He told them, and they knew they could not force issue.

“But they didn’t dare leave him unprotected, so each of the Four Dragon Gods who came for Hiryuu that day picked a person to gift some of their power to, to keep their brother safe. An arm with the strength of Heaven, eyes that saw All, a leg to reach the Heavens, and a body invulnerable to All. ‘You are now Our other halves. With Hiryuu as your master, protect him, love him, and never betray him, for as long as you live!’”

“That’s what the voice said.” Seiryuu cut in, comprehension dawning. “When our eyes met, and the fire…but, why me? If the person they gave the power to, lived a long time ago…”

“Hiryuu and his Dragon Warriors each headed a group that would become one of the Five Tribes of Kouka. But Hiryuu’s time was short. His mortal body could longer handle the fire that was so much a part of him, and he died. His warriors…as they mourned, they questioned how much of their grief was their own for losing someone they were close to, and how much was the dragon gods mourning the death of Hiryuu. Then…” Yona swallowed hard. “People wanted the power of the Dragon Warriors for themselves. Not that there hadn’t been attempts while Hiryuu was alive, but his wrath had dissuaded most. So they left the place where they had lived with Hiryuu, and scattered to the winds. But…”

She forced herself to meet the eyes of Seiryuu’s mask. “In time, three of them sired children who held the same power as them. That’s when they realized, that someday, Hiryuu would come back, and now their duty was to wait, each generation producing a Dragon Warrior, links in the chain connecting past to future. I…”

There was a sense of panic from Seiryuu as the tears came. “It took too long, for things to align right and for the couple who had raised Hiryuu after he descended to Earth to be reborn and marry each other. Because of me…your fates were set ages ago. Your ancestor had been given a choice; the power can’t be taken back. But…” Seiryuu knelt with her, still anchoring her with his hands on her upper arms. Raiju and the squirrel were equally still, sharing worry about their respective humans.

“…my power…outsiders can’t know of it…it’s the clan’s curse…” He whispered. “But, why did you…”

Yona rubbed her eyes. “I was told to gather the Dragon Warriors, if I wanted to survive and live. I’m selfish enough to want to survive and become strong and live, seeking out any power that’ll help me, even divine…I can’t!” She cried, unable to continue explaining.

Her hands fisted in her coat—Hak’s coat. “You’ve spent all this time alone and suffering without knowing the reason, and I want to hurt the people who refused to see your pain and explore the big wide world with you, but I’m the reason you’re suffering to start with! I can’t selfishly ask you to help me.” While Yun had done a superb job on the bloodstains, there were still slightly darker areas inside, over her heart and on her back, and all she could see was Hak’s pained face as he told her to stay put. “I lost someone that I didn’t realize was so important to me, because I selfishly made him take me with him, even though I weighed him down.”

Hugging herself, she reluctantly dislodged Seiryuu’s hands, and leaned forward, the nape of her neck bare as she pulled the ribbon off.

Her head knew that the dragon’s blood would prevent him from raising a hand to strike with lethal intent, but her heart and her grief, enhanced with Seiryuu’s sense of isolation…

_All I can offer up is my own life, even though I have promises to keep_

* * *

The young man who bore the power of Seiryuu in this generation understood what the man from his dream had meant, about keeping the girl—Yona—from doing stupid things, as he stared at this strange girl, filling with horror. He wished that either the white or the yellow dragon would run up and help him figure out how to console her.

Her cat, Raiju—the same cat from the dream—stared at him, immobile yet prepared to pounce.

_What do I do?_

_Show her that you do not hold her accountable for the actions of uncaring gods._ A man’s voice whispered in his head; the sense of crimson hair and eyes like Yona’s.

 _Return the trust she is showing with your own._ A different man, with hair like his own and golden eyes that bored into him.

Clenching his hand briefly to stop the sudden trembling, he pulled off the fur/fluff he wore. Shuffling forward a bit, he laid it over her, covering the nape of her neck.

He pulled his mask off, quietly scared yet feeling that it was something he had to do. “Yona.”

She raised up a bit, teary eyes widening as she met his uncovered gaze. Leaning forward and down, he rested his forehead on hers’, and closed his eyes, looking in, at her painfully subdued crimson presence.

* * *

A blue dragon floated over to a crimson mass, that turned out to be a small, crimson dragon. The blue dragon bumped the crimson one with his muzzle, drawing her head out of the coil she had hidden in.

Gratitude, for telling him the reason behind his power, for how it was meant to protect, no matter how fearsome and terrifying it appeared.

Wonder, at how she wanted to act on his behalf and do things with him.

Sorrow, for the loss she had suffered, for the weight of guilt and responsibility she felt, towards him, towards the one she lost.

Acceptance of why she had come, tinged with forgiveness with chiding rebuke, because with the guilt and responsibility she felt, ‘selfish’ was the last word he would pick.

* * *

Back in the physical world, Yona stopped hugging herself, grasping Seiryuu’s hands. “…am I allowed to apologize for the worry and panic I’ve caused you?” She asked.

He nodded, a motion she felt more than saw. They both pulled back, and she contemplated his eyes as she wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Will they stop you, if you leave?” She asked.

He shrugged, shifting as he broke eye contact. “I’m sorry, but they are gorgeous.” She apologized, a memory from Hiryuu drifting up. “Abi had gorgeous eyes too, even before the dragon’s blood.”

Standing, she replied to the question she felt as he put his mask back on. “The first Seiryuu. By all rights I shouldn’t remember anything from Hiryuu, but things happened. They just seem to…float up, in response to things relating to his warriors.”

He stood too, his hand slowly reaching out and touching her neck and the scars she hid with the ribbon. “…it was very close…” He commented. “A hair deeper…”

“…I wasn’t really thinking then, beyond feeling that I should have been the one dead.” She explained in a low voice. “Raiju…he stopped me the only way he could, by biting my hand and stealing what I had been—well, if he hadn’t done that, I guess Zeno, the yellow dragon, would have stopped me.”

To her quiet surprise, Seiryuu plucked the ribbon from her hand, tying it back. As he did, she returned the…mane (?) to where it had been on his head. “So what is your adorable little one’s name?” She asked, stroking the neat bow he had tied, almost feeling his own base calmness transferring to her.

“…Ao.” Perking up at the sound of its, her, name, Ao leapt back to her blue dragon’s head. The lightning man cat wasn’t inclined to eat her (thankfully), and while their humans were talking, had explained his situation, almost sheepishly asking her help in giving his fire dragon princess comfort.

Knowing how blue was meant to be with red, she agreed.

“I can’t say I quite agree with the name, but I’m not sure of a better one, since I’m sure you named her after someone special.” Yona admitted, scratching under Ao’s chin.

Raiju grabbed her dress with his mouth, trying to tug her back down the corridor. “What’s wrong? Is someone—“

The cave started shaking, and she heard the rock crumbling and falling. “Get—“ She cried, Seiryuu pushing her down to her knees and covering her with his body.

If Raiju answered, it was lost beneath the sound of the cave-in.

* * *

“What is that?!” “Where’s Hime-sama?!” Yun and Kija exclaimed together, when everything started shaking and rumbling.

The trio ran back to that dead end, stumbling through the last bit of shaking.

An opening that had been concealed there was filled with rock and rubble, floor to ceiling. Raiju was frantically pawing at the rocks, yowling and trying to dig through the blockage.

Kija and Yun started shifting rocks with him, as Zeno turned to deal with the villagers, who were naturally drawn by the cave-in. “Our friends are on the other side. Are you missing anyone?” He asked, willing to try politeness and offer ‘help’, if it meant getting the Miss and Seiryuu out.

The man who had greeted them when they arrived, the headman, shook his head. “No. Everyone is accounted for…” He trailed off, like he had something else to add.

“Except for Seiryuu.” Zeno said flatly. “Then again, it’s not like any of you actually consider him as one of your own; just your curse.”

“You don’t—“ There was yelling from the crowd, as Kija expanded his hand.

“More monsters!”

Kija shot them a scornful look. “So much for the brave defenders of Seiryuu. Like I said, I am Hakuryuu, come here with Ouryuu and Hiryuu-ou-sama for brother Seiryuu.”

“Dragons cursed other villages?!” A younger male voice from the back cried.

Before Kija could start yelling at them, Zeno abruptly stuck his left hand in the flame of the torch mounted on the wall. “Don’t waste your breath on them. Every one you waste is one less they have left.”

Everyone shuddered at his cold tone of voice, while the less hardy souls who saw his expression felt wetness trail down their legs.

Pulling what seemed to be a hand burnt to near uselessness out of the flame, Zeno flexed his fingers, and a sound similar to pottery shattering sounded, as his hand healed back to perfection, and golden scales covered the back of his hand and travelled down his arm. “Now, if I’m not mistaken about the layout, there’s a section back there where it’s only a foot at most to the outside. You will make sure we dig in the right spot from the outside. And if you think about lying, sacrificing Yona to try and kill your ‘curse’, you should know that it won’t work.” He informed them.

A bitter smile crossed Zeno’s face. “Because the first child to be born after his death, should a dragon die before his successor is born, will be a dragon. Even if the blood bond was released, the power is not something that can be taken back.”

Kija raised his claws menacingly behind Zeno, while the air crackled with lightning, Raiju’s growl echoing around them. “What say you?”

“…I’ll show them.” An older woman in front broke first. “This way.”

She gestured to the way outside, and Raiju bolted, shocking the people in his way to make them move.

* * *

_Damnitdamnitdamnitdamnitdamnit!!!_

_His speed in this form was a touch faster than if he was on two legs, despite the size difference._

_Not that it mattered._

_Between the short amount of time since his death and the poison that killed his last body, he couldn’t even manifest a ghost of his former self, let alone do anything useful with it._

_I should have paid more attention to the sounds of the rocks! Then I could have gotten them out!_

_His eyes were oddly watery, and he wondered if he was finally crying, letting out everything that had been building since he laid eyes on that treacherous bastard, spattered with his king’s blood and willing to stand by as the brightest light in the kingdom was extinguished._

_Since he realized just what was in the poison, and how he didn’t have enough strength to counter it and save that body._

_Since his princess pressed the points of that bastard’s gift to her throat, deciding that it wasn’t worth trying to rebuild her flame from the embers of her grief._

_He reached the rock face, his princess’s flame and Seiryuu’s moonlight glow still strong on the other side._

_For now._

_Growling, he channeled the energy he did have into the air, building a storm cloud that would make it easier to generate proper lightning strikes and not just static and cloud lightning._

_He knew he was using energy that he could be saving towards being able to shift to the form he’d known for the last thirteen years, but if she died, then it wouldn’t matter._

_Please, Your Majesty…don’t take her with you…_

_White Snake and Zeno joined him, Zeno punching the rocks while directing White Snake to use his hand to clear the rocks away. Narrowing his eyes, he aimed his strike for what felt like the path of least resistance._

_And if that happened to be inches from White Snake’s hand? Not his fault._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What I’m calling cloud lightning is when Raiju’s shocking people.  
> If you’re just now noticing how much I like serious!scary!Zeno, you clearly have not read my other works. And yes, I did cry writing the scene between Yona and Shin-ah. Too many feels.


	9. Chapter 9

After the rumbling ended, and the only sound was their breathing and the last loose bits of rock falling, it was a long moment before Seiryuu rose, letting her stand as well.

“RAIJU!!!” She yelled, horrified by the mound of rocks that completely filled where she thought he had last been, racing the rocks to get out and get the others.

“He’s on the other side.” Seiryuu said, the echoes of her panic and fear prompting him to speak more readily than usual. “The boy and the white and yellow dragons are there, and some of the villagers.”

“I guess all we can do is wait, and try to dig out on this side…” She suggested, eyeing the mound that seemed to be mainly large boulders.

“…here…” He said, pointing to a section of wall. “The outside’s close, here…need my axe…” He drifted to the end of the passage, where only it’s slightly larger size and the blanket neatly folded to one side marked it as his room.

The axe was next to the blanket. “Is there anything I can use to help?” She asked, glancing at the sword on his back.

Shaking his head, he started striking the spot on the wall. Kneeling down, Ao joined her, as she kept glancing at Seiryuu’s room. “…it’s not so bad…” He commented. “…I don’t have to stay back here all the time.”

“But you’re not really free to be with people, either. Ao seems to be the only one you can talk to. Do you have to ask or steal food, or do they remember that? What about when you were little? Maybe I’m worrying needlessly, but just feels so lonely…” She said.

“…Ao, before he died, looked after me…showed me the sword, and how to use my eyes, even the power I’m not supposed to use…” He said, frowning at the wall. “The others…they’re digging from the outside…the white dragon seems to think the cat nearly hit him with lightning on purpose…”

Yona couldn’t contain her brief smile upon hearing that. “Hak, the person I lost…I’m pretty sure he sent Raiju to look after me. Hak loves, loved, teasing people, and Kija would be an easy target, since he was very sheltered in his village. Not that they left him alone,” She assured him, feeling a touch of worried fear. “Or hid him away, but it almost felt like honored reverence. They love him, but it might be more because of being Hakuryuu. I might just be reading into it, or seeing something that it’s not.” She shrugged.

“…can I…how did…?” Seiryuu cautiously asked, curious and also feeling like this was his best chance to hear more about ‘Hak’.

Shifting, she hugged her knees. “My father is, was, King Il. A few weeks ago, on the night of my sixteenth birthday…my cousin, Su-won…killed Father. I was never meant to see that, so they were going to kill me too. Hak…he saved me, and we ran from the castle. Father had charged him with being my personal guard three years ago. We had gone to the capital of the Wind Tribe, Fuuga, and he was going to leave me there as he ran, taking the blame for a crime that’s not his. But I…it felt like I was losing Hak too, left alone in a strange place, where I didn’t really know anyone. Well, I knew Hak’s grandpa, Mun-dok, and after I convinced Hak to let me go with him, Mun-dok suggested that I visit an oracle, for insight into what I should do.”

For once, tears didn’t come as she thought back to The Cliffs. All she felt was an empty loneliness as she continued. “The Fire Tribe had helped Su-won, and the general’s younger son led troops in an attack against us. If I hadn’t been there, slowing him down and dividing his attentions…I froze, and Hak…took an arrow for me…” Her hand itched, where his blood had been. “I managed to stop them from shooting anymore arrows, but Hak went over the edge, only just catching himself, with no strength to pull himself back up. And I had no strength to pull him up. My balance shifted, and we fell. Yun found us—he was living with the oracle we had come to see—and treated Hak. But there was poison on the arrow. Whatever was in it, Hak reacted badly to.”

Seiryuu didn’t push, although Ao the squirrel pressed a nut to her lips. “Thank you, but I don’t think I can crack the shell.” She told the squirrel. “’Ao’…that was your predecessor?”

He nodded. Embarrassingly, the motion and the noise of the bells on his mask just now drew her attention. Or rather, she just now realized the source of the gentle jingling she had been hearing. “Did he wear bells too?”

He shook his head. “…right before the end, he couldn’t see anymore…someone dropped them, and he said it made it easier for him to find me…”

He threw himself back, to her brief confusion as the rock crumbled, revealing sunlight. “Miss!/Hime-sama!/MROW!!!”

She had her arms full with black cat, as he seemed to be trying to sniff every inch of her, checking. Standing, Yun and Kija at least let her reach the opening before hugging her. Zeno was nearby, and her eyes went to the singed edge of his sleeve, and the golden scales glittering on the back of his hand. Burying her face in Kija’s shoulder, she swallowed back her tears, for all the pain Zeno could no longer feel.

She managed to smile when Kija and Yun had enough of hugging her. Looking back to Seiryuu, still standing in the darkness, it was easier for the smile to be real, and she held out her hand.

“Let’s go together, alright?”

There was the sense of surprise, and he had a faint smile on his face as he took her hand and entered the light.

* * *

They put a respectable distance between them and Seiryuu Village (after ‘thanking’ them for their ‘hospitality’) before Kija’s exertions caught up with him. “They really should have done stamina training with you. Or your predecessors are overreacting. Might be both.” Zeno half-complained as he crouched next to a barely-conscious Kija.

Raiju, having decided for himself that Yona was no worse for wear after the cave-in, laid down across Kija’s face.

Kija grabbed at him, but Raiju darted away too fast for Kija to catch him. “Everyone’s fuzzy…like paints that haven’t been mixed all the way…”

“Guess we’ll make camp in this area.” Yun commented with a sigh. “Where’s Seiryuu?”

Seiryuu was a short distance away, facing a body of water that was too large to be a pond, but too small to properly be called a lake. At some unknown cue, he dived in. “GAH!!!” Kija’s condition was not improved by this.

Even after Seiryuu climbed by out and handed him a fish. “For me?”

A nod.

“…maybe next time use words?” Kija suggested, as Raiju hit the water with a tiny lightning bolt, making fish float up to the top of the water after a couple of minutes.

“Showoff.” Yona said fondly.

* * *

“Do you have any suggestions as what to name Seiryuu?” Yona asked Yun that evening. Kija had been passed out in the tent since shortly after finishing his meal, while Zeno and Seiryuu were in the general area, and Raiju was perched in a branch overhead.

“Hmm…” Yun considered. “The word coming to mind is ‘quiet’. Just pick something that works for you.” He advised. “Either way, I think you’ll be the one he feels closest to, after the cave-in…”

Yona shrugged. “Weren’t you scared? I was terrified, and I wasn’t even the one buried underground!” He asked.

“I was, a little, but since Seiryuu was calm, and he told me that Raiju had made it out, and that you guys were digging for us…Mostly I’m glad that Raiju wasn’t hurt.” She said. “I tried telling him to get all of you, when the rocks started falling…”

“When we got there, he was yowling and trying to dig.” He told her. “Then he was actually throwing lightning strikes at the rock. Kija thought he was missing him on purpose.”

She giggled a little. “I’m sure that if Raiju could talk, he’d fiercely deny that. But the worst thing was that Zeno had to hurt himself.” Closing her eyes, she saw the golden scales on the back of his hand, framed with the singed edge of his sleeve.

“He was kinda terrifying; he just stuck his hand in the torch without flinching or making a noise of pain! Just told Kija not to waste breath arguing with the villagers, since that’d be one less breath the two of you had left. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone had gotten hurt, if that older lady hadn’t agreed to show us the spot from the outside.” Yun shivered. “And I thought seeing his hand reattach to his arm was bad…”

“When was this?” She asked sharply.

“While you were asleep.” His eyes flicked over her dress and coat. “I’m sorry, for what I had been saying, when…” He apologized.

“Like I told you, everything you said was true, even if the timing might have been poor. When…when I finally snapped out of the numbness, all I could hear was you asking if I had ever thanked him…and I hadn’t.” She admitted. “It…it never really occurred to me, to thank him. Father had ordered him to be my guard, once he finally agreed, so…”

“I doubt it was something he hadn’t wanted to do, if he wasn’t actually given the order until he agreed.” Yun pointed out. “What changed his mind?”

“Kan Tae-Jun had been bugging me, trying to get me to go with him places in the castle or show him stuff. Now that I’m older, I realize that he had been trying to court me. Well, I knew that then, but now I know what his real goal was. I had finally just told him no, instead of running away, but he was going to drag with me him anyway when Hak just…swooped in and asked him what Tae-Jun thought he was doing with ‘his princess’. Father even had to keep Tae-Jun from drawing his sword on Hak.” Yona related. “Even attempting to draw his sword in my presence without an immediate threat to either of our lives was a major offense. He could have been made to disembowel himself if he had fully drawn it; as it was, he was banished from the castle.”

She noticed the weirded-out look on Yun’s face. “What?”

“Isn’t that, like, ordering him to kill himself? And I thought King Il was against weapons.” Yun explained, a touch pale.

“Only if he had injured Hak or myself. In that case, he would have a second to behead him and keep him from disgracing himself by showing pain. Just disemboweling himself without a second is more a deterrent from going farther the next time, even if it carries the chance of death. And Father was against weapons, but that punishment is ancient and enshrined in law. It would have been giving ground to have completely ignored it.” Yona explained. “And it’s not particular to the royal family. It’s the standard punishment for any vassal that attempts to draw his weapon in the presence of his lord or his lord’s family.”

Yun still looked weirded-out. “I never realized there were punishments that harsh for nobles…they never act like they can get punished.” He commented.

“Maybe in their own domains, but in the castle everyone is under the King’s Law, and one thing that Father was always strict on was keeping the nobles from acting outrageously. For most, having to leave the castle in disgrace is enough of a threat to keep them in line. By making him my guard, Father was saying that he trusted Hak’s judgment in anyone who might have approached me.”

“I’m not sure I quite get it. Are we talking for courtship?” Yun asked. _I knew nobles lived in a different world, but still…!_

“Yun, when it came to blood heirs, Father only had two choices; Su-won, and me. I think I have a couple of uncles from Grandfather’s concubines, but they rank too low to be viable choices by themselves, and those descended from Grandfather’s half-brothers are too far removed. One rule that has never changed is the three night one. I had maids, but they were always on a rotation. Without Mother to vet them, Father erred on the side of caution, not giving any suitors a way to me through one of my maids. The way I understood things, I would legitimize whomever Father wanted as his heir as the heir presumptive, while my son would be an heir apparent. Which is why I don’t know why he objected to Su-won when I mentioned him. Going by rank and bloodline Su-won was at the top of the list.” Yona elaborated. “I never paid much attention to the politics, but I still knew what the politics were, and how powerful my position was. Until I bore a son. Then I suppose I could end up ‘taking ill’ and been poisoned. So it was important to Father that whomever he chose wouldn’t do that.”

“But what would have stopped Hak from using his trusted position as a path to you?” Yun asked.

Yona laughed. “Even if the three of us were a group, I’m sure I was just the bratty tagalong. As the youngest or as the girl. If Hak had thoughts like that, I know for sure that he took his orders from Father, and his vow to uphold them, very seriously. He never would have betrayed Father like that, or any other way.”

She stood. “I’m going for a drink of water.” Raiju leapt down and landed on her shoulder as she said this. She was getting better at not being surprised by it.

“Hey, Ohime-sama?” Yun asked, almost shy. “Can I use your name? It’s really troublesome to always say ‘Ohime-sama’, and it probably isn’t a good idea, if or when we go into a town…”

“You’re adorable Yun!” She chirped, biting back a smile he couldn’t see as she walked away and she heard him complain about how he wasn’t ‘adorable’.

“Was that a yes or not?” Yun grumbled.

“Of course it was.” Zeno said as he returned, bearing a load of firewood.

Yun frowned at Zeno’s now smooth hand and arm as he set it down. “Does the length of time it takes to go back to normal skin depend on how bad the wound was?” He asked.

Zeno furrowed his brow as he thought. “You know…Zeno’s never noticed if the scales take longer to shift back if it was a really bad injury. He never thought to test that, when he got bored and tried different things.”

Despite knowing that he likely would not want to hear, Yun still found his treacherous mouth asking, “Like what?”

“One time, Zeno stabbed his eyes out to see if they’d become like Seiryuu’s, but they just got sharper. Not that they needed to; Zeno’s eyes were already sharp...” Zeno managed to fake a bewildered look when he saw Yun’s reaction. “Zeno doesn’t really feel pain anymore, so it’s fine.”

“It’s really not…” Yun started blinking rapidly. “I hate talking about eye injuries, my own eyes always start watering…”

“Zeno…will try not to talk about stuff he’s done to himself. He’s not used to it mattering.” He apologized, a touch awkward. _In a positive way, at least…_

* * *

“So Raiju, what should I name Seiryuu?” Yona asked as she took a bit of a walk after her drink of water. “Hak would probably suggest something stupid at first.” She complained with an odd mix of annoyance and grief.

“’Something that works for me’…Yun said he was ‘quiet’. He is, but he’s bright too. But not Zeno bright. It’s something calmer…gentler…”

The trees thinned out into a clearing, full of wildflowers and fireflies, setting the stage for a gorgeous full moon. Seiryuu, who was watching Ao frolic in the grass and trying to catch the fireflies, turned in her direction as she entered the clearing.

“’Shin-ah’.” As soon as she said that, it felt completely right.

“?”

“It means ‘moonlight’. Because you’re warm and bright like Zeno is, but you’re calmer and gentler, like moonlight. You kept me safe in the darkness, until we found the light.” She explained. “Do you like it?”

He nodded. “Let’s head back, alright? If you don’t think you’ll be comfortable sleeping with everyone in the large tent, we can set up the smaller one.” She suggested. “It was meant to mine and Yun’s, but I haven’t felt alright, sleeping almost alone. I think if someone gets hurt or sick then Yun will stay with them in that tent…”

As they departed the clearing, the newly named Shin-ah grabbed her hand. She gave it a quick squeeze as he let her keep going on, shifting her monologue in response to what she was feeling from him.

* * *

Ik-su’s hut was heavy with the thick, sticky humidity of an approaching thunderstorm. “What were you thinking, practically daring Sei-Shin-ah to kill you?” He hissed, his cat self mirroring his expression with ears folded back.

“It felt like the right thing to do.” She countered. “His life has been controlled by a choice made ages ago, so what else could I offer in atonement?”

“It’s not your job to take responsibility for what was done centuries ago.”

“Yes it is! When it comes to the Dragon Warriors!” She argued, before saying something she never imagined saying before she said it. “Except this is about your guilt for fleeing during the cave-in! Not about anything I’ve done, even if you are angry about that! So don’t take it out on me!”

The storm outside finally burst forth with a brilliant flash of lightning, the clap of thunder right on its heels. He stared at her like she had slapped him, and in a way, she had. She forced herself to maintain eye contact.

An eternity later, he was holding her from behind. “I should have paid more attention to the sounds the rocks were making.” He said, not outright saying that she was right. “I should have stayed with you.”

“You helped get us out. Staying put with me would have made no difference.” She told him, not looking back as she felt him bury his face in her hair.

“I led you back there.” His cat self curled into a tight ball in her lap and she stroked his fur, trying to calm him. “Stop taking on responsibility for acts of nature.” She lightly scolded, turning his words about responsibility back at him.

“You were still put in danger Yona—“ There was a pause, both of them holding their breath in that instant of casualness. “—Hime.” He finished.

She swallowed hard. Her name, and just her name, in his voice made her shiver. It was almost like how Su-won, in her dreams and imagining of the wedding night, would say it.

But better. A lot better. “I’d hope so.” He grumbled, nose still buried in her hair.

“…would it bother you a lot, if I asked you to keep using ‘hime’?” She asked, still stroking his fur, but now to keep herself calm. “The others…they don’t have to; I didn’t meet them as a princess, and I’m lucky that they’re friendly…”

He and his cat self seemed painfully still, waiting. “I would like you to keep calling me ‘hime’…for Father’s memory…” She finally got it out. “The whole world could forget, but…so long as you, at least, remembered King Il and his daughter…”

He pulled his face out of her hair and pulled her a fraction closer, resting his chin on her shoulder, his mouth next to her scars. “As we dug, all I could do was beg His Majesty not to take you with him, even as I created a storm cell so I could make real lightning bolts. Because without you, there would be no point, being able to shift forms. Believe me…” His cat self stretched up, nuzzling her cheek as the tears fell. “…I can never forget whose daughter you are…Hime-san…”

Digging her fingers into his arm, she listened to the rain outside, relaxing into his embrace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yona just noticed the bells because I just remembered them. Even though I wrote that bit before posting Chapter 8, I didn't feel like rewriting to put that in.


	10. Chapter 10

Yona found herself increasingly restless as the sun rose and the amount of light increased. First it was an increased awareness of the growing light. It grew in intensity until it almost felt like she was looking at the sun, and this was with her eyes closed!

Giving up, she cautiously opened her eyes. Squinting, it seemed like the world had gained hundreds of new colors overnight. Sticking her head out of the tent proved to be a very bad idea, even with squinted eyes. “Gah!” She cried, jerking her head back in.

“Yona, what’s wrong?” Yun asked, drawing over Zeno, Shin-ah, and a half-asleep Kija as they followed him into the tent.

“My eyes are really sensitive for some reason. Even in the tent, it seems really bright. And I’m seeing a LOT more colors this morning. It’s like I had been looking at the world as an ink sketch, only to turn around and discover it painted in…” She trailed off, somehow noticing the look on Zeno’s face. “What is it?”

“…what you’re saying sounds like what Abi said, when he was trying to describe the change his sight underwent after drinking the dragon’s blood.” He said quietly.

Trying to feel for her hat, Raiju nudged it into her hand. “Thank you, Raiju.” Yona said as she put it on. “It’s a little better with the hat, but I’m not sure I want to go outside yet…” She noted, managing to open her eyes fully.

Yun and Zeno leaned in, trying to look at her eyes. She could feel them watering, but she knew closing them wouldn’t help. “I can’t see a difference.” Yun complained. “Sei--Shin-ah, could you look? Without your mask? We’ll turn around, if that helps.” He added when he noted the reluctance in his stance.

Kija, Yun, and Zeno did just that, as Shin-ah pushed up his mask and looked closely at Yona’s eyes. “…the pupils are a little pointed at the top and bottom. And there’s traces of gold in the iris.” He said after a long minute.

“It’s like what happened after meeting Kija, where my right arm was stronger the next day. My eyes burned, when I met Shin-ah.” Yona commented. “But why does it seem like I’m gaining traces of their power?”

“It might be the circumstances. None of us had been near Ou-sama, when we drank the dragon’s blood, so the power and the blood bond was created at the same time. In all the generations between then and now, the power was passed down, but without the Crimson Dragon in the mortal realm, the blood bond couldn’t form. That properly formed when you met each of them for the first time. Your body had to adapt, so that’s probably why there’s no noticeable change until the morning.” Zeno proposed. “Zeno felt a little something, the first time he got close enough to the Miss, but nothing like the first time.”

“I’ve never really been injured, so I don’t know if I heal faster or not. But I haven’t been sick since I was eight, which could be luck or a trace of Ouryuu’s power.” Yona noted, purposely not thinking about the scars on her neck. “I suppose we’ll be staying put today. I’m not sure how well I could handle direct sunlight.” She sighed.

“Don’t worry about it Yona, it’s not like we’re on a schedule.” Yun assured her.

“And we’re not close to Ryokuryuu, so we don’t have to worry about him bolting on us.” Zeno agreed. “Just let your eyes finish adjusting today.”

* * *

What followed was a pretty quiet day of rest. Kija and Zeno both coached Shin-ah in recognizing everyone’s presences, while Yun checked their growing supplies. Yona spent the majority of the day in the tent, hiding under a blanket. Raiju joined her, and everyone took turns keeping her company. “There’s nothing worse than being unable to do anything because of a minor problem.” She complained. “Even if this happened at the castle, I’d still be stuck with nothing to do.”

Kija told some stories from the history of his village, turning bright red when she rested her blanket-covered head on his leg. She didn’t have the heart to tell him that the stories weren’t very interesting, and that the Hakuryuu almost seemed interchangeable. “What was it like, in the castle?” Kija asked.

“…a lot like your village. But with more guests. I had things to keep me busy, like the castle’s household budget and making sure things ran smoothly. I had to mediate between Laundry and Sewing every other month.” She remembered.

“How come?”  
“The fancier outfits have to have the seams ripped out before washing; the linings at bare minimum. Laundry always complains that Sewing makes doing that too hard, while Sewing complains about how Laundry doesn’t always send back every piece. Sometimes I think they fight to entertain everyone else.” She replied.

Shin-ah didn’t blush when she rested her head on his leg. “…other people don’t see as many colors?” He asked.

“No. Yesterday, I would have seen a pretty uniform color in Zeno’s hair. Today? It’s like there’s a whole spectrum of yellow that I couldn’t see before. I wonder how far I can see now? I guess we can check this evening after sunset.”

Yun was also excited at the possibilities. “We need to really check how much stronger your right arm is. I mean, I know you can carry the guandao easily with that hand now. And how would your enhanced vision affect learning to fight?” He wondered.

“I’m sure aiming for archery is likely easier now. I’m not sure how to ask Shin-ah about it with hand-to-hand fighting; he’s always seen like this, so I’m not sure how to frame my questions.” She conceded.

“I feel like this is cheating.” Yona told Zeno.

“Cuz you’re getting a portion of the dragon’s power?” At her nod he continued. “How is it cheating? Because you’re not sweating for every ounce of strength?”

“I guess…” She sighed. “I know I said I’d seek out any power to help me survive, but it’s one thing to borrow and lean on that strength; it’s another to actually use it myself.”

“Real world fighting is full of dirty tricks and ‘cheating’.” He noted. “Honor only exists in the dueling circle, for the king, and for the dead.”

“And it’s not like Su-won would care if it was cheating.” She muttered quietly.

Zeno pretended not to hear that.

* * *

She was back in the wisteria courtyard, on the stone bench. “I thought I would see you during the awakening with Shin-ah.” She told her bench partner.

“I wanted to see if I could reach you outside of that time, so I waited. I would have visited last night, but you had a prior engagement.” Hiryuu answered, sending a sly look out of the corner of his eye, making her blush. “It’s not like we’re really doing anything…or that I can remember the truth when I’m awake…” She countered.

“Once you’ve found Ryokuryuu you’ll have a full set, so that boost should let me visit Zeno.” He said hopefully. “I knew it was likely that he couldn’t remember, really, what I looked like, but…”

“It still hurts. That even with his power, memory is still the most fragile part of him. Even if he remembers the important stuff.” She continued. “I’ve noticed that his memory seems pretty good, if it relates to the dragon warriors or the time spent with you or his power, but not much else.”

“I watched, sometimes.” He admitted. “So did the others. But when your life is endless wandering, with random intervals of violence, it starts blurring together, despite your best efforts.”

“So why am I gaining…reflections…of their powers?” She asked, struggling for a word to describe what was happening before she settled on ‘reflections’.

“I’m not really sure either. When it was finally time, my dominant concern was being sure that the fire didn’t end up killing you, like it did me. That was my overall wish, so that might have something to do with it. I didn’t know how to make sure of that, so…I wished.” He admitted, sheepishly.

“After Ryokuryuu, what then?” She asked, staring at her hands. “Do we find a spot where I can train? Do we keep traveling?”

“What do you want to do? Beside surviving and growing stronger?” He asked, answering her questions with ones of his own.

“…I’d like to keep traveling. After that time, when the three of us snuck into Kuuto and I was kidnapped and nearly taken out of the city, and I saw how worried and scared Father was…it almost felt selfish, wanting to leave the castle walls.” She reflected. “’The total castle area is huge, so surely I had plenty of spaces to explore, without making him worry’. That’s what I thought, until the incident faded far enough into the past.”

“Even though there’ll be plenty of scary and horrible things to see? Things that might explain why Su-won and his supporters felt they had no choice but to kill Father?”

“…then it’s all the more important that I keep traveling, and see every last one of them. As Princess, as Father’s daughter…and as a human. And if I see all of those things, and understand his reasons, then I can look him in the eye and demand an answer, as to why he didn’t find another way.” She decided. “Then I’ll know if it really was concern for the kingdom or revenge that motivated him.”

Timidly, she leaned over to rest her head on Hiryuu’s shoulder. His arm came up and hugged her shoulders. “You shouldn’t think of it as cheating. Think of it as an expression of how you draw strength from your bonds with other people.” He said, in a mix of an order and a suggestion.

* * *

He wrapped her up in his arms, letting her sob into his chest as she hugged him back, hands linked behind his torso. He had been expecting this, since the man in the city, even if she had darted off to cry right after that. “I have two huge regrets. Not being there to protect Il-heika is one of them.” He told her, his voice odd as a couple tears fell into her hair.

“To survive and live and one day have the truth come out, I have to go against everything he believed in, and become intimately familiar with the very things he banned me from touching. Not to mention how I have to that to honor you.” She got out once her sobs slowed enough to let her speak.

“While I’m flattered, all you had to do to honor me was live fully. Killing that bastard would be a nice gift too, but I’d rather have you alive then him dead.” He said.

“What’s your other huge regret?” She asked, leaning back to look in his face.

She wasn’t sure what to make of his expression, sorrow and longing and grief. “Failing in my duty to stay with you. As this me, even if my cat self is preserving the spirit of that duty.” He whispered.

She raised up on her toes as he leaned down more, their lips meeting in the middle. It was tear-stained, and hardly more than skin to skin contact, but it still sparked something low in her belly.

Ending the kiss, she was surprised to see a blush on his cheeks. “What are you blushing for? It’s not like there’s anyone to see, and one kiss wouldn’t be enough to violate the trust Father gave you, when you became my guard.” She asked, curling her hands in his robes.

“Because that very thing seemed to be an impossibility only a short while ago.” He answered, his hand shifting low enough to rest right above the curve of her bottom.

“I was too blinded by what I now understand was impossible, to realize the treasure at my side.” She explained, her own face growing warm. “And I always thought those exchanges between lovers in the stories were silly, but they don’t seem so silly, right now.”

“That’s because they’re things that are only serious in the right moment.” He pointed out, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

“…do you think, Father will be mad, at the path I’ve chosen in order to survive?” She asked in a small voice.

He was quiet as he considered. “I think that his anger would be directed at the people who made that path necessary.” He finally said. “Never at you.”

* * *

“I don’t know why you’re visiting.” Jaeha declared, pouring a drink for the dark-haired man. “It’s not like I’ll be helping her.”

‘Her’ was a crimson-haired girl, who had slipped out of the tent to practice archery.

The man rolled his eyes, the black cat at his side doing the same thing. “It’s impossible for you to not help a cute girl, no matter who she is. And the more you fight it, the more it will pull you back in.”

Sipping, Jaeha decided against a direct answer. “It’s not like it matters if she has all of us.”

“Yes it does, since one, distant, day she’ll take back what is rightfully hers. And Four Dragon Warriors is a lot more impressive than Three Dragon Warriors and a cat.” The man countered. “Even if she is willing to walk away, do you really think the others will let you?”

Jaeha declined to comment. “Fine. But you’re in for a world of hurt if you hurt her.” Stealing the bottle, he disappeared, the black cat going over to the girl.

* * *

“Do we have money for an inn?” Kija asked, after everyone had marveled at the ocean, eager for a chance to sleep in a real bed and under a solid roof.

“Probably not.” Yun vetoed, making Kija droop. “I’ll go and ask around, but I don’t think we can get a good one with what we have, with this many people.”

“I’ll come too.” Yona said, eager to properly see a city.

“Nope.” Yun declared. “You are resting today. Actually resting. You’ve got bags under your eyes, your hands and legs are scratched up, and even if your right arm can handle the weight, the rest of your body is still struggling to carry that thing.” He pointed at the polearm.

She pouted as Yun set off for town. “You’ll enjoy everything more tomorrow, once you’ve rested.” Zeno reminded her.

Yona failed to hide her grimace as she sat down in the shade. Raiju settled into her lap, purring loudly. “Raiju you cheat…” She got out through yawns.

It wasn’t long before she proved Yun’s point, and fell asleep.

“…how can we get her to not overdo it?” Shin-ah asked. “Her muscles need rest.”

“We could try telling her that. Zeno’s not really sure.” Zeno admitted, sitting down next to Yona. “Ou-sama never let on how weak he had gotten, until he collapsed. Until the last day, the only reason he stayed in bed was because one of us was always with him. Or his wife; she was terrifying.”

“Why didn’t he say something?” Kija questioned, setting up the smaller tent.

“Probably so we Warriors didn’t worry, and his epic stubbornness.” Zeno reminisced, spreading out Yona’s bed roll.

Shin-ah carried her in, Raiju laying down close enough for her to pull him close, which she unconsciously did.

“All of Ryokuryuu’s directional changes are making me dizzy.” Kija complained. “How are we going to approach him?”

“Zeno and the lad will likely have to approach him, and get the Miss close enough. Zeno can hide his presence, but he doesn’t think he could teach either of you how to.”

“…why not?” Shin-ah asked.

Zeno’s face was ancient as he looked out to sea. “Because some part of Zeno remembers what it was like to be human and not a monster.”

The faint, bitter, smile on his face kept Kija, always the positive one regarding the Dragon Warriors, from opening his mouth and protesting about being monsters.

* * *

“I was right…” Yun complained to himself, after asking after prices at a fourth inn. “Especially since we don’t know how long this will take.”

Sighing, he started back to the main gates. Now that he was properly taking in the city and not just scanning for inns, he noticed that something felt off. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but…

Yun jumped as a hand slapped his ass and squeezed. “Got a nice ass here. This requires inspection.” The official (!) said to his partner, who had grabbed Yun’s wrist.

“What the—I’m a guy!” He yelled, cursing inside at how the knife Zeno gave him was at the bottom of his bag.

“An ass like this can’t be found on a guy.” The second official countered, coping a feel of his own.

Yun tried to make eye contact with someone in the crowd, but everyone avoided his eyes and turned away.

Then there was a gust of wind, and the hand on his wrist vanished, followed by the one on his ass. “It isn’t beautiful to force yourself on a lady.” His savior (like a foreigner, based on the clothing) noted.

“I’M A GUY THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!!!” Yun roared as he started running, the strange man next to him.

Sometime later, Yun sagged on the wall of a side street, panting. They had only lost the officials after Yun tripped one of them. “What kind of place is this?! Even in the famine area of Fire they aren’t that brazen!!” He demanded, his panting slowing.

“Yan Kum-ji, the lord, has the town in a death grip. No one dares to complain.” The stranger (couldn’t be a foreigner; he spoke like a native) revealed. “The whole city knows of his ‘secret’ business, but with as scared as he has people…” He shrugged. “The brave few standing against him are the pirates.”

“And no complaint has made it to the Earth General? Or Hiryuu Castle?” Yun questioned.

“If one has, then they have no problems with what’s happening. If one hasn’t, then there’s not enough oversight.” There was a dark look in his eyes as he said that.

“After what just happened, I’m glad my group doesn’t have enough money for an inn. Is there a back way to the gates or outside the walls?” Yun asked.

“I’ll take you.” The man offered.

* * *

Jaeha couldn’t avoid feeling nervous as he drew closer to the city gates with the kid. Hakuryuu and Seiryuu were hovering some distance out, and there was a strange presence that he couldn’t pinpoint.

He was too distracted to spot the pair at the tree line until the kid spoke. “Yona, you’re meant to be resting.”

“I did rest! Raiju’s purring put me to sleep!”

Jaeha felt his whole being pulse as the girl, dressed in blue with a straw hat, ran over. “Did something happen?” She asked once she reaching them, looking up at Jaeha, revealing purple eyes and brilliant crimson hair.

The pulse came again, and Jaeha fell to one knee as his being burned, the voice of indifferent gods reminding him of the curse in his blood.

He was dimly aware of a female scream, and, looking up once the voice finished, he saw the girl on her knees as well, clutching her heart.

Hiryuu-ou reborn.

“Are you alright?” She asked, crawling over to put a hand on his forehead to check his temperature.

There was a spark, low in his groin, when her hand made contact, and Jaeha jerked back. “I’m fine.” He lied as he stood, the kid and a blond guy helping the girl.

“Ryokuryuu shouldn’t lie, least of all to the Miss.” The blond said, his presence shifting to the sun-bright flare of Ouryuu.

“Wait, he’s Ryokuryuu?!?!” The kid yelped, with honest disbelief.

“Sorry Yun. Shin-ah spotted you with someone he said felt like Ryokuryuu, so Zeno and I were hoping to catch him without a chase.” The girl apologized to the kid, Yun. “I’m sorry for using Yun as bait, but Zeno was sure you’d bolt, otherwise.” Her now crimson presence held cautious hope. “My name is Yona.” She introduced herself.

Even with this twist of Hiryuu-ou being female, and this bizarre…allure, Jaeha know what to say. “I’m Jaeha, and I had sincerely hoped this day would never come. I felt Hakuryuu and Seiryuu in the area, so I’ll say it directly: ‘I have no wish to serve you, please leave’.”

“Is the idea of Hiryuu really so terrifying, that you’d try to scare me into leaving?” Yona asked quietly, to his quiet shock. “I had come to ask you, as I had the others, for your help in my selfish quest to survive. I would have asked as one person would ask another for help, never as a master demanding compliance. But I see there is no point.” Hakuryuu and Seiryuu ran up as she continued. “If you’ll permit us to rest in this area for a few days, then…the only way you’ll see me again is if you seek me out yourself.”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (low bow) I'M SORRY FOR THE DELAY EVERYONE!!! I FINALLY got a new job! It's in a warehouse, and requires a degree more of active engagement of mental energy (picking the required number of boxes from the right spot) than my job in retail, which is where most of my story-dreaming had been going on. 
> 
> I know it's not Drawn, but now that I'm not in a state of emotional exhaustion, I'll do my best to work on it.

There was a pause, then chaos. “Hime-sama you can’t be serious!” Hakuryuu ( _did he really have to dress in all white?_ ) exclaimed.

“What about Ik-su’s prophecy?!” Yun yelled.

“Yun, the prophecy is what the gods want to happen. It’s useless unless people act on it to make it happen.” Yona pointed out. “And, Kija, of course I’m serious. Remember how I told you that just because your experience is positive doesn’t mean it’s the same for the others? If Hiryuu and all it represents is so abhorrent to Jaeha, how can I force the issue?”

Seiryuu (so he thought, given the mask) didn’t say anything, and it seemed like he didn’t have an opinion either way.

Then there was Ouryuu. “Are you sure that’s a wise decision?” He asked. “Especially given how different the bond is this time?”

“It may not be wiser to force the issue either.” She pointed out. ”And…”

There was the flash of an image, of the dark-haired man from the dream, unnaturally still. “I cannot ask anyone to die for me.” _Not again._ “So please, let’s just relax a little and explore the city for a couple of days, and watch the ocean as we decide what to do and where to go next. And no badgering Jaeha either.” She scolded Hakuryuu, who flushed, embarrassed to be called on it.

“I’m sorry to have intruded into your territory, Ryokuryuu Jaeha.” With a slight bow, dumbfounding Jaeha, Yona turned and started walking away.

“Yona!” Yun called, darting after her.

This left the Four Dragon Warriors eyeing each other.

Kija didn’t know what to think. All of the Dragon Warriors were reunited, for the first time since the very beginning, and it wasn’t the happy occasion he always thought it would be.

It was so very far away from happy, with Ryokuryuu Jaeha’s odd mix of loathing and longing and carnal desire and the urge to flee.

To everyone’s shock (even his own), Shin-ah broke the silence first. “If this causes Yona to start hurting more than she already is…” Compounding the shock, he pushed his mask up. “…then I’ll paralyze you and haul you back to her. To make you see the truth.”

Jaeha was surprised that he wasn’t paralyzed right then and there, with the beautiful and terrifying weight of those golden dragon eyes on him.

Pulling the mask back down, Shin-ah followed Yona and Yun.  
  
Eyes flicking between Jaeha and Zeno, Kija followed Shin-ah, afraid to say anything. He didn’t trust himself not to try and convince Jaeha that the dragon’s blood and serving the reincarnation of Hiryuu-ou-sama was worth it.

Zeno’s flicked over Jaeha, whom he had last seen as a boy, asleep and chained in a hut, with not enough slack to reach the door and be in the sun. “Zeno thinks Ryokuryuu might want to watch the Miss for a bit, and wait before he turns her down for real.” He finally said.

“Why bother? She’s already made up her mind about me.” Jaeha tried not to sound like he was complaining, like it didn’t hurt watching Yona walk away.

“Ryokuryuu isn’t paying attention to the crimson dragon hatchling inside, if he really thinks that the Miss has given up on one of her dragons. The bond isn’t a river flowing one way this generation. As much as the dragons are drawn to Hiryuu, Hiryuu is drawn to the dragons, this time. Because this time, we are not unnecessary guards fostered on him by overanxious dragon gods.” Jaeha found himself staring at the gold medallion hanging from his head scarf, the dragon on it almost appearing alive. “This time…we’re her anchors, as she claws her way up from the abyss, putting the pieces back together, lending her our strength until she can stand tall on her own. And once that day comes, we’ll help her set things right.”

“But how do you know she’ll succeed?” Jaeha asked, forcing himself to question the almost rosy picture Ouryuu was creating.

“Because Zeno’s been watching the Miss her whole life, and waiting for lifetimes before that. Zeno’s good at watching, and even better at waiting.” Flashing Jaeha a bright smile, Zeno skipped away, his harsh brightness softened on the edges.

* * *

“Yona! You’re not going to try and convince—“ Yun cut off once he managed to get a look at her face.

She was teary-eyed, grimacing in pain. “You can’t feel it Yun.” She told him. “All that loneliness and sorrow and fear. He’s pulling away as hard as he can from everything influenced by the dragon’s blood. Hiryuu coming for him is his worst nightmare, and now it’s real. But at the same time, he can’t help being drawn in, digging his heels in all the while.” A couple tears slid down her face. “Even though it hurts to walk away…”

Reaching camp, Yona crawled into the smaller tent the others had set up while Yun was gone, worrying Yun and Shin-ah, who jogged up as she did.

Raiju’s kill for the night was by the fire pit Kija had dug, but he was nowhere in sight. But both of them knew he was likely in the tent with Yona.

Casting a look at the smaller tent, Yun began preparing the kill, Shin-ah building the fire.

Said fire was roaring when Kija returned. He had hovered at the edge of their camp for a while, needing to be close to Yona but wanting to be alone. “Did you really have to threaten Ryo-Jaeha?” He asked as he sat down.

“You threatened him, Shin-ah?” Yun repeated, dumbfounded. He wasn’t surprised that Jaeha had been threatened; he was surprised Shin-ah had done the threatening. “Why?”

“It’s hurting Yona.” Shin-ah replied, as if it was obvious. “I don’t know how he sees Hiryuu, but it should be obvious that Yona’s nothing like whatever his image is. Even with just a brief meeting.”

Yun forced himself to concentrate on the cooking food. “Would it help her if I put something to help her sleep in her portion?”

“No clue. The Miss’s reaction to Ryokuryuu’s feelings is because of her fears. She’d still likely not ask, but she wouldn’t’ve effectively exiled herself from his territory without it.” Zeno popped up, making everyone, even Shin-ah, jump. “But he’s still drawn to her and to us, so Zeno suggested that he watch for a few days, before he properly refuses. It’s not like he was actually posed the question.”

“What do we do if he doesn’t agree? Hime-sama has vowed to never meet with him again once we leave.” Kija asked, concerned.

“…Knowing how Ryokuryuu are, being unable to ignore pretty girls in distress, he’d likely be trailing behind us, just happening to ‘leap’ in when we run into trouble.” Zeno finally decided.

* * *

In the tent, Yona was curled up with Raiju, listening to the others, even though they had lowered their voices. “I know I’m being stupid.” She whispered. “That he’s afraid because I’m Hiryuu reborn. But…” Tears fell into his fur. “Is it so obvious that serving me is a death sentence?”

* * *

“Now, one of us should spend the night with the Miss. So who wants to sleep with her first?” Zeno asked cheerfully once the food was gone.

Kija just turned red, shocked to the point of being unable to speak. Yun was red too. “You do realize that she’s a young woman and we’re guys, right? Even if no one else finds out…”

“But you haven’t complained when we all sleep in the big tent.” Shin-ah spoke up, feeling oddly bold in speaking.

“It’s different when it’s just two people!” Yun protested.

Meanwhile, Zeno approached Yona’s tent. “Miss? Zeno thinks would be a good idea if someone spent the night with you in the tent. Do you have a preference or should Zeno just shove in Hakuryuu while he’s out of it from shock?”

There was a watery giggle as Kija squawked. “…only if he wants to come in.” She said, agreeing with Zeno.

Kija’s face looked like it couldn’t make up its mind on whether to blush or drain of blood as he bid the others good night.

Kija couldn’t quite look at Yona without blushing. Even having shared the larger tent with the others, and how nothing was going to happen aside from sleep… “How would you…” He asked, unable to complete the question.

Yona sat on her bed roll, holding Raiju. “…can I lay my head on your chest?” She asked, equally timid.

Raiju’s face was painfully neutral as the two humans settled in for the night. “I guess I should have expected this reaction from Ryokuryuu.” She said quietly, her ear over his heart as his dragon arm held her close. “I don’t know, how much the others have said…but I lost my guard before Zeno came to me. He had vowed to Father to keep me safe, and when we were attacked, and I froze…you’re about his size, and I know it’s not fair to you, making you a stand in…”

“I understand; undoubtedly he guarded you for years. Not enough time has passed for us to be as close. So if there’s anything I can do…” He countered, his claws carefully entwined in her hair.

“…just hold me, please?”

They both fell silent. Kija found Raiju’s eyes unsettling, and finally spoke up after her breath evened out into sleep. “I can scarcely touch her on my own initiative. Do you really think I’d take advantage and stain her honor?” He whispered. “Or are you jealous?”

Imperiously, Raiju laid down on Kija’s other arm, closing his eyes in a way that meant he was only dozing.

Feeling a little more at ease, having reached an agreement with Raiju, Kija closed his eyes.

* * *

“Alright brat, spill. What’s crawled up your ass and died?” Captain Gi-Gan asked her favorite problem child, slamming down a bottle of sake on the railing next to him.

Jaeha had been moping since he returned from town. He kept looking off to the cliffs, before scowling and jerking his head away, only to repeat the cycle several minutes later. It couldn’t have been the encounter with the officials that the gossip vine reported to her…

He sighed, knowing he had little choice in answering. “The others are here. All of them.” He answered, pouring her a cup.

“And by ‘all of them’ are you including…” She questioned, filling Jaeha’s cup before tossing back her own.

“Hakuryuu, Seiryuu, Ouryuu…and the reborn Hiryuu.” He said quietly, swirling the sake in his cup instead of drinking it. “And Hiryuu…isn’t what I expected.”

“Oh?”

“It’s a girl.” If Jaeha had been hoping for a reaction from Gi-Gan he was disappointed. “A crimson-haired girl who’s promised to never meet me again unless I go to her, deciding it wasn’t worth asking for my help since I tried ‘scaring’ her off.”

“There’s more to it than that.” She prodded, keen on needling more details out of Jaeha, detecting a touch of disappointment in his voice.

“…when our eyes met, it was like my blood turned to fire. I couldn’t help being drawn to her, not that it was anything I was feeling. She seemed…fragile, like cracked porcelain ready to shatter at the slightest touch. Apparently, there was no point in trying to ask me to help her, since serving Hiryuu is so terrifying for me—her words, not mine.” He added when Gi-Gan opened her mouth to remind him that yes, he WAS terrified of serving Hiryuu.

“Did you get a name?”

“…Yona.” Gods, even just saying her name did something to him.

“You know there’s only one person in the kingdom known to have crimson hair whose name is Yona.” She pointed out. “I’d imagine that she really does need help, and has no one else to rely for it.”

“After she walked away, I got threatened and it was ‘suggested’ to me that I watch her while they’re in town, before actually telling her ‘no’. Not that I have any other answer, but I didn’t properly get to say it.” Setting down his untouched cup, Jaeha retrieved his erhu and went to his room, where he could enjoy the moonlight without having to see the cliffs where the others were camped out.

Shaking her head, Gi-Gan pulled out her pipe. “I gather that you likely didn’t expect Jaeha to be this troublesome…Zeno-kun.”

Zeno dropped out of the rigging. “It’s more like Zeno didn’t expect the Miss’s reaction to Ryokuryuu-chan’s posturing, Gi-chan.”

Gi-Gan scowled as Zeno claimed Jaeha’s cup. “I am far too old for that nickname.” She complained, refilling Zeno’s cup. “You eternal brat.”

Zeno ignore the complaint. “You know the only way he’d leave with you is if Kum-ji is dead.” Gi-Gan reminded him.

“The Miss will be close to the warpath after hearing what happened to the lad in town, in the morning. And it’s not like they know someone will be watching.” Zeno commented.

“And Zeno’s sure she’ll convince you, when it’s time.”

“Forgive me if I’m not convinced of her chances.” Gi-Gan said drily.

A couple cups of sake were drunk in a companionable silence before Zeno spoke again. “…Zeno came close to losing her again. But not at the hand of another.”

Gi-Gan blew out a tendril of smoke, considering this. “There’s been no reliable word on the events regarding King Il’s death and Yona-hime’s disappearance.”

“Of course there isn’t. The people responsible miscalculated; they didn’t account for her.” Zeno’s eyes were dark. “No matter how bad conditions have gotten…if it was for the kingdom, they’d’ve accounted for her.”

“How many days do you think, then?” She asked.

“…Three, max.”

“You’re too naïve; two days.”

“Deal.” They shook hands. This was an old game for both of them, so neither needed to vocalize their bets or terms.

“Have fun with an irritable dragon Gi-chan!” Zeno chirped, beaming.

He ignored the knife that cut his cheek. “Remember Zeno has to deal with three irritable dragons and a cat.” He pointed out, darting away before her aim got any better.

* * *

In the morning, Yona stubbornly worked through the agony that was her right leg, which felt like it was in a near-permanent state of being cramped. Leaving the polearm with Shin-ah, who, as interested as he was in exploring the city himself, wasn’t as interested in being around the crowds, Yona turned to find Yun pulling on her cloak. “Yun…what happened yesterday?” She asked with her arms crossed, suspicious.

“…a pair of officials thought he was a girl. Jaeha saved him.” Shin-ah revealed, when Yun just turned red and stayed quiet.

“Why would Jaeha have to…” Kija trailed off as understanding hit. “They’re not supposed to be that brazen, right?” He sounded unsure of himself.

“They’re not.” Yona nearly growled. “They’re representatives of the generals and the castle. However discipline is the duty of the local lord, which doesn’t reflect well on him. But the only things from Awa have been tax write off requests due to piracy.”

“What kind of write offs has he been claiming?” Yun asked as they set off to town properly.

“Unfortunately, the current laws don’t require the lords to identify the cargo lost unless it’s one targeted by a particular royal tax on just that item. They do have to provide proximate weights and pricings.” Yona explained. “So I don’t know what cargo he has been losing to pirates.”

* * *

The pain and cramping in her right leg eased up once they entered Awa proper, and the exchange of looks between Zeno and Kija confirmed it. Yona figured he was sticking to the rooftops.

After exploring the market (Yun making a list of what to buy, in order of descending priority and need), they gathered at a small stall near the waterfront, selling a kind of flavored dumplings on skewers. “Something’s off about this town.” Yona declared, filling off a dumpling that tasted like green tea.

“What do you mean? It seems normal enough to me.” Kija asked.

“None of the smiles are real; the mouth smiles while the eyes are scared. Everyone is extra cautious around the officials too. And the prettier girls do their best to avoid drawing attention to themselves.” Yona listed off what she had noticed. “Not to mention the pirates. If it’s such a big problem, then he could request aid from Chi’shin or Kuuto in taking care of them. The fact that he hasn’t…” Shrugging, she bit into the rich brown dumpling and froze.

“…Yona? Are you okay?” Yun asked carefully after a minute.

She moaned. “So good…”

Curious, the other three bit into the rich brown dumpling on their own skewers. Kija and Zeno had much the same reaction as Yona, while Yun, who didn’t collapse into bliss, still enjoyed it. “Hey what flavor is this?” He asked the stall keeper.

Zeno had devoured the dumpling in one mouthful and was trying to steal Yun’s, while Kija and Yona opted for ‘small bites and savor’. “That one?” The stall keeper, a woman in her late thirties at most, repeated. “It’s chocolate.”

“Chocolate?” The four chorused. “Where has this wonderful flavor been hiding my whole life?!” Yona demanded.

“Traders from the lands south of the Kai Empire trade it. I think the tree it comes from originally grows on the other side of the Eastern Sea, but the climate in those lands is similar enough to let the trees grow.” She showed them a handful of dark brown beans. “It’s really bitter without sugar added to it, but cane sugar works the best, I’ve found.”

“This could be huge! Why are you in this little stall here?” Kija asked.

“The custom in chocolate’s native land is to mix it with hot spices, and like I said; it’s really bitter without sugar added to it. My brother-in-law travels to those lands south of the Kai Empire, so he brings everything back for me. I’ve been playing around with it, seeing what I could add to it to overcome the bitterness. I only hit on this recipe a couple months ago.” The woman explained. “Most people haven’t commented on the flavor before.”

“If this reached Kuuto it would be a hit across the kingdom!” Yona exclaimed. “…do you have any more?”

Biting back a laugh, the woman sold her last five skewers to this strange group of travelers. “I’m carrying these two; otherwise Shin-ah won’t be able to taste it.” Yun declared, doing his level best to keep the skewers away from Zeno, finally just running away, back towards the gate.

Hastily finishing their second skewers, Kija and Yona followed.

* * *

Jaeha, lounging on the roof of the stall, eyed his half-finished chocolate dumpling. “So it’s deliciousness is a dragon thing.” He mumbled to himself.

After a long moment, with a mental shrug, he resumed eating it. Even if his enjoyment WAS because of the dragon’s blood, chocolate was too delicious to give up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea of the dragons adoring chocolate is one that wouldn't leave me alone. Now if my mind can stop putting Assassination Classroom in The Hunger Games...


	12. Chapter 12

Jaeha trailed the group for the rest of the day, holing up in a tree near their camp. He was sure the other dragons, at least, felt him, but none tried to coax him out.

And then there was Yona, the reborn Hiryuu-ou, and (unless there were two girls with crimson hair named Yona) the Princess of Kouka. Yona, who acted like every other girl.

Who bowed to him, and vowed to leave him alone.

Damnit, Hiryuu-ou was supposed to demand his service, force him to fight and die for him, and wait on him hand and foot.

The reborn Hiryuu-ou wasn’t supposed to be a girl covering grief and despair with a smile.

Right now, he was watching her practice with some kind of foreign polearm, which made her look smaller than she already was. It looked like she was mostly using her right arm… “Zeno told Ryokuryuu the bond was different this time.”

Jaeha nearly fell off his branch. With some undignified scrambling, he stayed on, glaring at Ouryuu, who looked like a damn squirrel on his branch. “What do you mean?”

Ouryuu gave him an unimpressed look that reminded him of Captain Gi-Gan. “Surely you’ve felt the crimson dragon hatchling inside.”

He had, in fact, and was determinedly ignoring it, since even one look/feel left him wanting to cuddle it close. “What else?” He asked instead, watching Yona nearly fall to the ground after tripping over herself.

“She has echoes of our powers.”

Only his preemptive grabbing of the branch kept Jaeha on. “What?!” He demanded. _Bad enough for Hiryuu-ou to come for me, but to steal my power—_

Zeno, rolling his eyes, slapped the upside of Jaeha’s head. “ _Baka_.” He scolded, the word strange but the tone clearly saying that Ouryuu thought he was an idiot. “I said ‘echoes’. Do you feel your power draining away?”

Now that he was paying attention, Jaeha realized he didn’t. In fact, he felt stronger than before.

“Her right arm is stronger, but nowhere close to Hakuryuu. Her eyesight’s improved, but she can’t paralyze anyone. The only sign of your power has just been the fact her right leg was terribly cramped this morning. And there’s been no sign of my power. Hiryuu-ou’s ‘power’, if you want to call it that, was connecting with people; this is just a manifestation of that.” Ouryuu lectured. “We don’t know how far it will go.”

The black cat that clung to Yona, and looked like the one in that dream, sat at the base of the tree, staring at him. Noting the position of the sun, Jaeha pushed off the tree hard, heading back to the ship.

He pretended not to feel Yona’s eyes on him.

* * *

“We really do need more fighters, if we want to take Kum-ji out for good.” Captain Gi-Gan sighed. “But I’m not sure where to get them.”

“…I think I know of a couple guys…” Jaeha tentatively said, thinking of the other Dragon Warriors. Hakuryuu had to be a fighter with that arm of his, and he doubted Seiryuu would carry a sword if he didn’t know how to use it. An image of Yona wielding that polearm popped up, and he shoved it away.

* * *

Jaeha made himself wait until noon before he went looking for the other Dragon Warriors. Scanning the streets below, a flare of emotion from the crimson dragon hatchling distracted him. Spotting a familiar straw hat in an alleyway, he touched down on the roof above her.

* * *

Yona crouched in the narrow alleyway between two buildings, trying to choke back tears. Raiju was very tolerant of how she clung to him.

A child was dead, and it felt like her fault.

Because she hadn’t stepped in.

Because Kum-ji didn’t reinforce discipline on his officials.

Because her father hadn’t stopped Kum-ji.

_No wonder people here would think his murder a good thing; if he doesn’t stop a bad lord like Kum-ji…!_

“What point is there in getting stronger if I still can’t help anyone?!” She cried out, half to herself, half to Jaeha above her. She knew Zeno had told him to watch her, but she doubted there was anything she could do to change his mind, so she just acted like she usually did. _Wait…_

“Jaeha.” Wiping her eyes, she stood, turning so she could look up at him without craning her neck too much. “What do you know about the pirates?”

“What do you want to know?” Jaeha asked back.

“How I can make contact with them. And help them.” There was a hard look in her eyes. “There’s a child dead in there, killed by officials. Because Kum-ji lets them get away with things like that. Because the evil that is Kum-ji arose in Father’s era, yet nothing was done.” She broke eye contact as she started tearing up again. “Father had told me that everyone in Kouka was happy, and had enough food. And part of me knew he was lying to me, but I let him. Because I didn’t want to leave my tiny world and my tiny happiness. Not until it was shattered, never to be put together again. If there’s even one, small thing I can do, to fix things, and make the lie even a little bit true…I have to do it.”

“…Actually I had come to see if Hakuryuu and Seiryuu would help us.” Jaeha finally admitted. “We don’t have enough fighters to end things.”

“We’re a package deal.” She replied firmly. “When can we go and meet your captain?”

* * *

Yona was a touched worried when Captain Gi-Gan announced they’d have to prove themselves useful. She scarcely trusted herself with Hak’s polearm, let alone next to other people, and she doubted her archery would be enough. As Raiju produced three mice, making the Captain yell at someone who’d swore that the ship was mostly mouse-free, she made her choice. “I can fight some, but I’m nowhere as good as the others. What can I do to earn my place here?” She asked, sounding calm but with her heart in her throat.

The Captain smirked, seemingly pleased with her frank admission. “There’s an herb called senju. It has wonderful healing properties, but it only grows in a small cliff-side cave accessible only by a narrow ledge. Bring some back—without help.”

“Yona…” Yun looked at her, worried.

“It’s not a test if I get help.” She pointed out. “I’ll be right—“ There was a black-furred annoyance weaving between her feet. “Raiju! Let me—“

Raiju kept weaving and darting around her feet, trying to stop her from leaving. Growing annoyed, she opened her mouth to scold him, when she pushed off with her right leg, trying to jump over him, and then she was up in the air. Luck let her grab onto some rigging, and she found herself blinking down at everyone on deck, a couple dozen feet down.

Instinctively, she squeezed her legs together, even if certain events meant there wasn’t much to see (and hadn’t that been fun, explaining THAT to Yun). Feeling her face grow hot, she surveyed the rigging and slowly began working her way down. “You’re not helping Kija!” She called down, once she was low enough to hear his panicking.

Then she was out of ropes to grab onto, with the deck still ten feet down. “Will someone catch me?” She called down, but no one moved. “Don’t be in such a hurry to help.” She muttered to herself, feeling irritable.

“Flex your knees when you land!” Jaeha yelled up. “Will one of you get the cat out of the way?!”

Enlarging his hand, Kija grabbed Raiju in his fist, wincing as claws and teeth found spaces between the scales.

Closing her eyes, she envisioned the drop. With a deep breath, she let go.

She nearly fell over onto her hands and knees, even with flexing her knees, but she was back on the deck. Raiju was yowling inside Kija’s fist. “Raiju I’ll be right back! You should realize that I won’t stay off to the side helpless and useless! Not again!”

The yowling stopped, and she could picture him sulking. “I won’t be long.”

With only silence to this last reassurance, she turned to Jaeha. “I’m ready.”

* * *

It was only when Shin-ah confirmed that Yona had started along the ledge that Kija opened his fist. Raiju leapt onto the railing, still sulking, as Kija examined the damage. “Is it safe to shrink it back to normal?” He asked Zeno, a bit shocked that Raiju had drawn blood.

“Wash the blood off first.” Zeno advised.

“What’s up with the cat?” One of the pirates asked. “It acted more like a jealous lover then a pet.”

Raiju’s tail twitched. Somehow, the pirate managed to not get shocked.

Suddenly Raiju left his sulk, looking at the sea and the sky intently as Captain Gi-Gan straightened up and did the same. “Wind’s picked up. The sea’s getting rougher.” She noted.

Raiju barreled through the legs of the idiots between him and the gangplank.

“C’mon, let’s follow the cat.” Gi-Gan ordered.

* * *

Catching sight of the cliff, Kija swooned, Zeno just barely catching him. Raiju was pacing a hole in the grass, waiting. “You sent Yona THERE?!” Yun exclaimed. “Why?!?!”

“She’s a woman, and there are times when women must be strong, when everything around them is precarious.” Captain Gi-Gan explained. “Are you going to insult her determination and pride?”

Before Yun could respond, a head of crimson hair crested the hill, followed by green hair. “YONA/HIME-SAMA!!” Yun and Kija yelled, running towards the pair.

Naturally Raiju arrived first, leaping up to drape himself on her shoulders. “Oh you forgive me now?” She commented sarcastically, as Raiju rubbed his head against her ribbon and her scars.

“Did you get the senju herb?” Captain Gi-Gan asked.

Nodding, Yona untied the pouch on her sash gingerly, trying to avoid pushing any thorns in deeper. Yun craned his neck, eager to get a look at this mythical healing herb as Captain Gi-Gan examined the contents of the bag. “Well then, you’re—“

“No.” Yona countered with a shake of her head. “After I got it, a wave came up and nearly took me out to sea. Jaeha had to save me, so I didn’t truly get it without help.”

“Do you give up then?” Captain Gi-Gan asked with raised eyebrow.

“I’ll go back for more—without help from anyone.” Yona said firmly.

There was a long moment, and then the Captain shocked everyone by laughing. “If Jaeha let a girl be swept out to sea, I’d toss him in after you myself.”

Grabbing Yona’s chin (despite Raiju’s warning hiss), she noted the red eyes. “Cried your eyes out, didn’t ya?”

“It was the seawater…” Yona grumbled in protest. Sometimes it felt like all she did anymore was cry, these days.

“You’ll never abandon your comrades. Welcome aboard.”

“Eh—“ Yona was cut off by the pirates cheering, crowding around her with Yun, Kija, and Shin-ah.

Jaeha felt the tension in his neck and spine fade. “Ryokuryuu looks ten years older!”

Jaeha whipped out his hand mirror to check. “That was exhausting! How do all of you keep up?” He complained.

“By getting her to slow down, even if we have to fake it as our need.” Zeno replied, choosing to reply like Jaeha was talking about Yona’s energy.

Jaeha gave Zeno a dirty look. “I meant the emotional chaos. She’s stubborn and pure-hearted, and all it got her is swaying on her feet! She’s worse than the guys; they have some strength!”

“Ryokuryuu isn’t looking very hard; the Miss is the strongest of all of us.” Zeno commented quietly. “Not everyone can rebuild themselves from despair, or knowingly choose a hard and long road. But it was a closer thing then Ryokuryuu can ever guess.”

Shin-ah had shared with all of them, save Yona, just how close it had really been: a hair’s width more and…

 _He literally saved her from the edge of death._ Zeno reflected, Yona collapsing to her knees before Shin-ah picked her up in his arms, heading back to the ship.

* * *

“Oi, out of my bag.” Yun ordered Raiju with a frown, setting down a bowl of water in front of Yona so she could wash her hands off before he looked them over.

(Naturally) being ignored, Yun grabbed Raiju and bodily hauled him out of the bag. Raiju had contorted himself in some bizarre way to keep hold on a jar of something. “Honey?” Yun questioned when he realized what was in that particular jar.

“Right; you can use honey to ease out thorns. It’s easier than using a needle. And less painful.” Zeno remembered.

“That’s not something I expected you to know about.” Yun remarked, carefully pouring the honey on Yona’s hands.

“Well Zeno can’t heal if something’s inside of him, and he may have taken a tumble or five into thorn bushes.” Zeno admitted. _Or five hundred._

“So how long do I keep the honey on my hands?” Yona asked as Yun went to tend to dinner, which was basically him tossing every kind of seafood in that the pirates threw at him.

Zeno just shrugged. “Maybe until it feels like the thorns are out? Think it depends on how long the thorns are.”

Yona waited until she could see thorns floating in the honey before she stuck her hands back in the water. Rubbing the honey off, she frowned as she noticed something. “Huh?”

Zeno, Yun, Kija, Raiju, and Shin-ah (Jaeha hovering suspiciously close) crowded in as she pulled her hands out of the water.

There was no sign her hands had been covered in thorns. “ _Uso—_ “ Zeno uttered, making the word sound like a curse as he grabbed her hands.

The calluses she was forming with her archery and wielding the polearm were still there, but the rest of her hands were as smooth as they had always been. “Hime-sama’s never shown any sign of echoes of Ouryuu’s power before, right?” Kija questioned. “This should make training safer for her…”

Despite Kija’s positive spin, everyone could feel the tension coming from Zeno, and Yona’s growing concern. “ _Let’s worry about what it might mean if I recover from a wound that should be instantly fatal_.” She told him, the use of ‘ _uso_ ’ prompting an unconscious shift to old Koukan on her end.

Still visibly worried, Zeno let go of her hands, forcing himself to go over to the dinner pot. “So good!”

“OI! Hands off!” Yun scolded, going along with Zeno’s attempt at normalcy.

* * *

“MARRY ME!!!” A pirate with a bandage across him nose cried, his cry echoed by the rest of the pirates.

“No way; I don’t go for jobless bums.” Yun declined, sticking his tongue out, before turning to the issue of Kija and seafood. “Kija, just eat. It’s just crab.”

“If Hakuryuu doesn’t want it Zeno’ll eat it!” Zeno had swiped the crab claw out of Kija’s chopsticks before Kija processed what he had said. “Hey!” He protested, shoving another piece of crab in his mouth.

With a sigh, Yun idly plucked Ao out of the air, mid leap into the pot. It was something he was getting depressingly good at. “You do realize that if you leap in there, you’ll be cooked, right?” Yun asked Ao.

“Kyuu?” She asked, tilting her head at the food mother. She was a tree spirit; nothing as simple as scalding water could kill her.

“…never mind…” Yun finally started on his own bowl as Yona spooned out a bowl for Captain Gi-Gan.

“I think your crew wants to keep Yun.” She commented to the Captain as she gave her the bowl. For some reason, the Captain was off to herself on the ship.

Captain Gi-Gan snorted. “They’re just lazy; I make damn sure my boys can manage something like cooking.”

“Can I ask how many…?” Yona trailed off, not quite willing to fully voice her question.

“Twelve. I’ve lost twelve, with six more that will never be sailors or fishermen again.” Captain Gi-Gan sighed heavily. “Most of my boys will be thrilled to return to normal fishing, but not Jaeha. Will you take him with you?”

“I don’t think he wants to come with me. And I can’t make him do something he hates.” Yona admitted.

“That eager to be rid of me Captain?”

Looking up, the pair saw Jaeha on the roof of the deckhouse. “Not with that many guys, no matter how pretty.”

Jaeha leapt down to the deck. “Now if it would just be me and Yona-chan…maybe when you’re older.”

Yona pouted, feeling irrationally annoyed by Jaeha’s teasing. “It’s not me who’s too young; you’re just too old.” She retorted, walking away before she embarrassed herself by bringing up Hak’s teasing, or by crying.

Captain Gi-Gan poked Jaeha with her chopsticks, vaguely surprised that he didn’t topple over, with how stunned he looked. “Finally met your match I see.” She commented as he shook himself out of it.

“I’m not old!” He grumbled, stalking off for more food.

Shaking her head, Gi-Gan rolled her eyes when she caught sight of Zeno and his annoyingly cheerful smile. “Brats. The lot of them.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While a couple people are expressing eagerness for when Yona runs into Su-won again, you're all missing the question you should ask:  
> What will she do when she sees Kan Tae-Jun again?  
> I've ruled out catatonic and calm. Debating between angry and hysterical. Probably closer to angry.
> 
> And yes, Zeno Gibbs-slapped Jaeha. Because Hak can't punch him.


	13. Chapter 13

The mood changed when Shin-ah abandoned his bowl, staring intently out to sea. “What is it?” Yona asked, standing next to him and squinting.

There hadn’t really been discussion of just how seeing far worked. Shin-ah wasn’t sure, and all Zeno remembered was ‘wanting to see far.’

Suddenly, she could see the ships, depressingly devoid of anything unique. All seven of them.

Then everything…snapped back, making her eyes sting. Blinking rapidly, she followed everyone into the main room. There she learned something that made all that delicious seafood churn. “Human trafficking?” She repeated, numb.

About all she retained of the discussion was that they were hoping to end things for good. Wandering to the bow, she sat on the railing, absently petting Raiju. _How were there no complaints?! Awa was a medium-sized port; was there truly no way for a complaint to reach Chi’shin, or Hiryuu Castle?! And I know Father would have acted!_

Yona remembered overhearing an argument between Father and Kan Su-jin, about how the General hadn’t reported on how women were sold for taxes illegally. After she had nearly suffered the same fate, Father made it very clear that such things could only happen under limited circumstances. “How did none of this get out?!” She whispered. “Or…” _Am I just fishing for reasons to excuse Father? Am I just trying to avoid the truth, or is it a valid point that the King can’t act if those below don’t inform him?_

“Yona?” Jolting, she looked over at Yun. “The captain said there’s a room onboard that you can use.”

“Am I kicking anyone out?” She asked, not wanting to make anyone give up their bed for her.

Yun shook his head. “It’s more like a storeroom that has a built-in bench large enough to double as a bed. Surprisingly, Jaeha was the one who suggested it.”

“Jaeha?” Yona questioned. “I wonder why…” With a shrug, she stood and followed Yun to the room.

* * *

“It’s nice of Ryokuryuu to suggest the Miss could sleep in the storeroom.” Zeno commented, bearing sake.

Jaeha rolled his eyes. “I’d suggest that for any girl, so don’t make a huge deal of it.”

Somehow this had turned into a dragon’s gathering, with Kija and Shin-ah nearby. Yona had wandered to sit on the bow after the meeting, looking dazed and concerned.

“So what’s up with the cat? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cat act like this one.” Jaeha asked.

“The Miss was very low, after her guard was killed protecting her. She hadn’t realized how important he was to her, until he was gone. We think he sent Raiju to her, since he could no longer be at her side.” Zeno explained.

Jaeha snorted into his sake. “So he’s some kind of ghost cat?”

“He’s a guardian raiju, we think. He’s shocked people and created lightning bolts.” Kija said. “And he is very solid.” He carefully flexed his dragon hand, still stunned that Raiju had drawn blood.

“…Yona seems conflicted and concerned.” Shin-ah remarked. “I’m not sure about what.”

“She’s likely wondering how this went unreported and how much blame lays with her father.” Zeno commented. “Can someone be accused of inaction if they don’t know action is required?”

“You’re very confident he’d had acted.” Jaeha said, disbelief coloring his words.

“When she was six, the Miss went out into Kuuto with two other kids, wanting to see the city. She was grabbed, and the kidnappers nearly made it out of the city with her before they were stopped and she was rescued. Il would most certainly have acted.” Zeno recounted. “But with how unstable her world has become, Zeno can’t blame her for questioning.”

* * *

“What was up with you today?” She asked him, his cat self warming her lap.

They were lounging on the bluff overlooking the cliff with the cave containing the senju herb. While his cat self warmed her lap, her head was pillowed on his stomach.

He shifted, not answering her. She didn’t rush him, trying not to squirm as his hands played with her hair. “…I was afraid you would throw yourself into the sea for real…” He finally admitted. “I know in my head you wouldn’t, but…”

He pulled her up so her head was over his heart, their bodies lined up and dislodging his cat self. It was easily the most intimate position she had been in, barring that time he pinned her when she startled him awake.

It was real enough for her to feel the heat of his body and the shape of his chest muscles. Trying and failing not to blush, she simply said, “I’m sorry for how I hurt you with my selfishness.”

He kissed the top of her head, his cat self wiggling under her arm. “It’s not like you knew, so don’t apologize.”

Personally it felt like he was minimizing his feelings to her, but she let it go, not sure how to argue her case.

* * *

Yona sat down with her breakfast of rice and fish, Raiju carrying a fish almost as long as him for his own breakfast. The others soon joined her, and a group of pirates started a noisy conversation.

About her father.

“Man I hope Prince Yuhon’s kid is a better King than King Il.”

The dragons sent her worried looks, but she stared intently at her breakfast.

“Why did King Il get crowned anyway? He was the second son, right?”

“There is that rumor that old King Ju-nam was senile at the end; maybe he took advantage?”

“…Yona, you broke your chopsticks…” Shin-ah cautiously pointed out.

“Oh; whoops.” Tossing the now useless chopsticks aside, she carefully began pulling out the splinters.

“If he did, you’d think he’d have done more. I mean, besides giving up land and letting the generals walk all over him from what I’ve heard.”

“Anyway, wasn’t he killed by one of them?”

“No it was his daughter’s guard—“

Standing, Yona shoved her bowl at Shin-ah as she walked away, doing her best not to cry.

* * *

Yona wasn’t sure what to do. Kija was handling all the heavy lifting, Shin-ah and Zeno were going over fight tactics with the pirates, and Yun was managing the wounded.

Jaeha noticed this. “Want to go with me into town?” He asked.

Remembering that this likely would mean leaping, she nodded. Raiju leapt up into her lap as Jaeha took off.

“Does he go everywhere with you?” Jaeha had to ask.

“Almost everywhere.” She replied, one arm across Jaeha’s shoulders and the other on Raiju, even though she knew he wouldn’t jump off.

She couldn’t help the broad grin growing on her face as she took in the view, the wind whipping her short hair around. “It’s like we’re really flying!”

“You were terrified on the ledge; the height doesn’t bother you?” He asked.

“I was terrified of falling. If nothing else, I can trust you won’t drop me because then you’d have to deal with the others.” She pointed out.

He mentally conceded the point.

“It’s a little weird; each Dragon makes me feel different. Zeno is cheerful, Shin-ah is calm, Kija is patient, and you make me feel relaxed.” She noted.

She really _did_ feel relaxed, for the first time in ages. It was like all her worries, fears, and anxiety were left on the ground. Even Jaeha felt like he was straining away less.

At least, until he realized it. “…this dragon’s blood.” She only caught the end of his sentence, but with how he started pulling away…

“Is that your excuse for everything?” She asked before she could stop herself.

“Huh?”

“Do you blame everything on the dragon’s blood? Even if the dragon gods choose when a successor is born and who it is…you’d still have it; it’d just be dormant. Too many generations have passed for the dragon’s blood to really be a separate thing anymore. It’s like blaming yourself. And…would you really choose to give it up, and give up all this?” She didn’t looked at Jaeha as she said this. “How do you trust that anything is you? Or do you run from everything?”

Jaeha didn’t answer as they landed on a roof, having reached town. He was quick to push her head down behind the peak of the roof. “Up here you can really see what Kum-ji does to the town, especially when he rides through.”

Peeking out, she saw a carriage rushing through the street, people vanishing and shutters closing in a wave before it. An ugly middle-aged man brushed the window curtain aside, and with her keener sight she saw delight in his eyes at the empty street. “He delights in their fear.” She whispered to Jaeha, her expression dark.

“No surprise there.” He whispered, before someone crouched in an alley trembling caught his eye. The fear seemed strange, even with Kum-ji having just passed through. “Down there.” Pointing, he let himself drop off the roof.

Raiju and Yona followed, Yona the least graceful of the three. “I need to get something to wear under my skirts, if I’m going up on roofs.” She noted to herself as Jaeha approached the trembling man (?)

* * *

“Is there anything you need to get?” Jaeha asked after they had gotten an end date for the ‘job’.

Yona sighed. “I’d love more of the chocolate dumpling from the stand by the water, but Yun has all the money.”

“…I have money.” He admitted nonchalantly. “So let’s get some.”

She perked up, and he tried to ignore the way part of him basked in the joy of doing so.

And how the damn cat eyed him suspiciously.

It didn’t work. “I’m not sure your cat likes me.” He commented as he wove through the back alleys to dodge officials.

“I thought that was the default for most all cats?” She asked. “To not like most people.”

“This doesn’t feel like the usual cat disdain.”

She looked at Raiju, who was being lazy and riding on her shoulders. It felt weird, but she had quickly gotten used to it. It was almost like Hak had his arm across her shoulders. “He does seem suspicious of you…but he’s looked at everyone like that, at the start.” She snapped her mouth shut before she brought up the idea of Jaeha joining them. She was positive he didn’t want to hear it, and she had promised not to ask.

Even if the thought of leaving without him was like a sword in her heart. And now her head went back to Father. _Maybe there’s incense somewhere on the ship…maybe if I relate my concerns to him, I’ll feel better. If only there was an easy answer to his degree of responsibility…but that would make things too simple._

Suddenly, there was a skewer waving in her line of sight. Full of just chocolate dumplings. She couldn’t stop her smile as she accepted the skewer, biting back a moan as she took her first bite. “I really hope she expands out of Awa. I’m really going to miss these when I leave.” She commented, joining Jaeha on a nearby roof after a brief moment of focus on the act of jumping.

“Right now these are a well-kept secret. If Kum-ji knew he’d want in and jack the price up.” He remarked. “Plus right now the main ingredient isn’t subject to anything but the basic import tax, so once it expands…”

Despite herself, she found herself wishing she could share this delicious dessert with Su-won and Hak, and convince Su-won to help the seller, KoKo, expand out of Awa. Raiju had turned his nose up after a sniff, and was soaking up the sun-warmed tiles. “Something wrong?” Jaeha asked, noticing her just staring at her skewer, not eating.

“…just wishing I could bring the past forward, and share this with Su-won and Hak. At least, the Su-won I thought he was.” She said quietly.

 _Hak must be the guard then,_  He reflected, before asking, “The one you thought you knew?”

She nodded. “He was cheerful and smart and a bit goofy. And loved sweets. But after everything…I don’t know how much of it was real.”

“?” He made a questioning noise, mouth full.

“…when he stepped into the light, after Father—Father’s body had…it was like I was looking at someone else. I knew he knew how to use a sword, but that never connected until I saw him holding one covered in blood. He’s always been pretty, but his face had a harsh beauty to it, and his eyes…it reminded me of the way I had seen Uncle look at me once. I can’t remember the when or why, just that feeling that I meant nothing to him at all, beyond being an obstacle to get rid of. Like killing me, even if that was what he really wanted, would trouble him no more than striking a fly…” She blinked rapidly. “And if Hak hadn’t stopped them…he was just standing there, with that same look on his face as I cried out to him for answers, ‘for the good of the kingdom’, they claimed…”

He didn’t even try fighting whatever it was that had him pull her to him, hugging her with one arm as she hid her face in his chest. _How long has she been sitting on this? How much of the stress of the last few weeks has she buried away with her despair and grief, hiding behind a smile and good grace?_

Raiju’s tail flicked as he watched them carefully. Over her head, Jaeha sent him a dirty look. Like he’d take advantage of a situation like this. Still, he kept his hands above the waist. “Do you want to just…vent about anything? Everything?” He carefully asked as she pulled back a little, enough to raise her head.

“I don’t have any right to complain. Not after…” She bit off a dumpling. “And it’s not like it would change anything.”

“You would feel better?” He suggested.

“…Eating unpolished rice is weird. The texture is different, but polished rice counts a lot more. Liking the food doesn’t matter but some of the things Yun finds that he says are edible… I seriously question how much of it is ‘edible’ and not ‘it won’t kill you if you eat it’.” She finally admitted. “It’s like I’ve been dumped into another country where everything’s similar, but different enough to surprise you. Mostly I watch the others when we’re in a town, but I guess the biggest thing is bowing.”

“Bowing?” He repeated. “Is it because you’re not used to it?”

She made a face as another dumpling disappeared. “More like I’m too used it. Half the bows I see leave me cringing inside, since a large part of my etiquette training was bowing. Who bows to who, how deep, how long…the guests bow deeper than the hostess, but the hostess must hold the bow longer, because guests must be honored even if out on the street they rank lower…” She shrugged. “I’m getting used to it.”

“…it was a crash course for me too, after I left my village.” He cautiously admitted. “It’s hidden away, but to hide someone who can leap over trees…and it’s not like people were banging the door down to visit.”

She pulled completely out of his arm when the realization hit her. “They imprisoned you?!” Her face was pale.

“Bit more than imprisoned. With my predecessor as the warden and catcher. Stubborn bastard hung on for twelve years after I was born.” He remarked, finishing his dumplings and staring out to sea.

“Huh?” She furrowed her brow at the last part. “Dragon Warriors…usually don’t live long after the next one is born?”

“Not usually. He was twenty seven when he finally died, so I’ve got two more years I think. Not that I’ve felt weaker.” He quickly reassured her, although her face was still pale as she finished her last dumpling. “Look, forget I said anything about it, alright? At least until Kum-ji is gone. I mean, since the others didn’t tell you anything about that. Anyway, is there anything you want before we head back?”

“…do you know if you have incense back at the ship? I…really should offer at least one prayer to Father, and one for Hak…” She didn’t meet his eyes as she stood and hopped off the roof, landing more gracefully this time.

“Do you have a preference?” He asked, leaping down himself and starting to the incense stand the Captain always used.

“Just the cheapest. I know it would be impossible to get the kind I’m thinking of; Mother gave that recipe to Father when they married, he said one time…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout out to my brave readers who took the plunge and read this!!!
> 
> I'm thinking Yona might be holding it together less than in canon, since Hak (her rock) isn't present, and as much as she likes the others, she doesn't feel comfortable with them the same way she would with Hak. Jaeha just happened to catch her at the right moment. Because when you get down to it, she's remarkably adaptive, at least outwardly. Here, given where she is emotionally, there's more an element of 'I have no right to complain'. Which might be present in canon, but we don't see that. 
> 
> Bowing is in fact a very complex thing depending on age, social status, etc. As Princess, she would have been drilled on mastering and keeping track of all those details.


	14. Chapter 14

Listening to the pirates ponder how to fight Kum-ji and save the kidnapped women at the same time, Yona spoke up, resolved even with her heart in her throat. “If we could get someone to send up a flare from the boat with the women…would it help?”

“Aye.” Gi-Gan, sensing where this would go, left it at that. She wanted to see how the girl argued her case.

“But who’d send up the flare?” Yun asked, a nagging suspicion in his gut.

“I will.”

All the males on the ship erupted. “NO WAY!!!” The pirates yelled.

“Absolutely not Hime-sama!” Kija declared.

“That doesn’t seem…smart…” Shin-ah pointed out.

“Or safe.” Jaeha added.

“NYAO!!!”

“NO WAY!!! You’ll have to find your way up to the deck and light the flare without getting caught! The flare has to be small and powerful else no one will see it or get it in in the first place!” Yun protested, finger in her face.

“Shin-ah can spot the flare.” Yona reminded him. “Yun, even if we end Kum-ji’s operation, it’ll be a hollow victory if those women are sold regardless. If Su-Hiryuu Castle or Chi’shin get their heads out of their asses and send investigators, they will want testimonials from victims. Without that, then Kum-ji may walk, or, if he does us a favor and falls in the sea, his estate can’t be seized to compensate the victims.” She explained firmly. While actual statecraft had been absent from her education, learning how the system was meant to work had been a large part.

Yona turned to Captain Gi-Gan. “Captain…please let me do this.”

Gi-Gan considered the girl before her. Recent events had hardened her, but not rendered her brittle. She proved that on the cliff. “Alright. BUT—“ She cut off the outcry. “For this to work you need another person with you.”

“I’ll go!” Kija volunteered.

Gi-Gan rolled her eyes. “Someone who can pass as a woman, dumbass. The girl—“ She pointed at Yona with her pipe. “—would have to be hideous not to be taken, given her hair color. You won’t make it in if you’re not as good looking as the rest, leaving her on her own.”

“I’ll go!” Kija and Jaeha declared.

“Are you not listening to me?!” Pinching the bridge of her nose, Gi-Gan jabbed her pipe at Yun. “He’s the only one of you who could pull it off.”

“Now hold on; I’m not happy about Yona going! Let alone going myself!”

“Maybe Shin-ah can scan the ships…” Yona mused, resigning herself to the death of her idea. “Or Raiju—“

“Hey, I didn’t say I’m not going.” Yun cut in. “I don’t back lost causes.”

“Are you really sure about this? Especially since you’re…” One of the pirates, who had a bandage across his nose (and been part of the breakfast discussion), asked. “I mean, cuz you ARE her, right? Yona-hime.”

He swallowed hard as all the dragons, plus Raiju and Yun, stared at him. “Well…Kija is always calling her ‘Hime-sama’, and it IS common rumor that Yona-hime has crimson hair; what are the odds of two girls named Yona, with crimson hair, in the same age range? It’s not like we’re blind or deaf or senseless…”

“…being Yona-hime makes it that much more important for me to do this.” Yona finally answered. “While I can say, with certainty, that Father would have acted against Kum-ji if he knew of his actions, I say that as his beloved daughter, the one he so carefully sheltered in the castle after Mother was murdered, and I had been kidnapped, almost suffering the fate of all the women Kum-ji has sold.”

Ignoring the current of murmurs, she continued. “But my personal belief means nothing to all of you, the victims of a system that has failed you. As much as I am sure Father did not know of Kum-ji’s crimes, that does not change how, in the eyes of the city, he was at least complacent in those crimes because of inaction. The evil that is Yan Kum-ji arose in Father’s era, and I will not cloister myself in apparent safety when there are people around me in danger. Not while I have breath.”

She gave the pirates a slight bow, adding, “I know I have little cause or reason to aid you, but will you let me do what I can to aid you?”

She was mobbed by the crew, their voices mixing into one affirmative cry. “Aw, shi-crud, now we really can’t stop you!” The pirate who had spoken up remarked.

“I won’t pass out if you swear.” Yona commented with a smile.

“NYAO!!!” A shock went through the crowd, backing the crowd up and leaving a circle of clear deck around Raiju and Yona.

“You’re not coming.” Yona told him firmly, hands on her hips. “There’s no way they’d let me in with you on my shoulder.”

“Meow!” Leaping up to his usual perch, Raiju suddenly vanished.

“…and you told me it wasn’t a ghost cat.” Jaeha deadpanned as Yona and Yun poked where Raiju had last been seen, feeling that he was still there.

“But can you contain yourself if I get roughed up?” Yona asked, giving the invisible cat a dubious look.

“Nya.” Now visible, he leapt off her shoulders, visibly sulking.

“If you can sneak in with us, or to where we end up being taking, then I won’t say anything. But you better be there when this is over.” Yona decided.

Raiju nodded in agreement.

* * *

Dinner was a bit awkward, as the pirates, knowing who she really was, weren’t quite sure how to act around her. “You don’t need to act any differently. Technically speaking, I’m only a princess now as a female granddaughter in the male line of descent from the king. Practically speaking, the castle likely thinks I’m dead. So please don’t act differently for my sake.” Yona told them, doing her best not to laugh (or cringe) at their attempts at formality.

That made some of them relax, but not all of them. A small knot of them still looked nervous. Finally one of them, wearing a green bandana, blurted out, “So what DID happen that night?”

Kija’s arm expanded, breaking his chopsticks. Another pirate punched his arm. “OI!!! Why are you asking that?”

“Like you don’t wanna know too!! The tension of trying to put it nicely was getting to me!” He protested, pale as he eyed the claws, sword, and knives bristling in his direction.

“It’s alright everyone. Maybe…maybe it IS a good idea if I talk about it.” Yona told her dragons (even if Jaeha would protest to high heaven over being hers’).

“You sure Miss?” Zeno asked.

Yona nodded. “Maybe it’ll get easier to handle, the more I talk about it. And…the more people who know the truth…right now, there’s only two of us who know exactly what happened, even if those who helped him know the basic idea. He’ll never speak of it on his own.” Her eyes were distant. “Plus, now that I’m thinking about it…he may have been counting on the apathy of the people to keep things hidden. After all, if there’s no public outcry, then just a brief ‘investigation’ would do. Especially since I haven’t been a public figure, so I couldn’t appeal to anyone to force a proper investigation.”

“It does make sense.” Yun agreed, apologetically. “Your father wasn’t well-regarded, so to a lot of people, the circumstances of his death don’t…matter…”

Taking a deep breath, Yona set her bowl and chopsticks down, so she didn’t drop them when her hands started shaking. Raiju curled up in her lap, giving her something to do with her hands as she started. “So…it was the night of my birthday. Father had mentioned engagement, but when I suggested my preferred choice, and the one everyone in the castle expected, he objected strongly. He had framed it as my choice not being something he could give me, but the strength of his objection seemed off. So that night, after the banquet and everyone was in various states of drunkenness, I went to his rooms. It wasn’t something I usually did, but he never did any work on my birthday except for emergency items, so I knew this was a good time to talk to him about it, and not be interrupted. When I got there, the door was partially open. It was oddly careless, even if the door was guarded. Then I realized that I hadn’t seen anyone between my rooms and Father’s.”

“Anyone at all?” The pirate who had spoken up about her identity questioned.

She shook her head. “Even if most of the staff would be off duty, there’s still the guards. I should have passed at least five of them, plus the two that are always at Father’s door. Even if he orders them away from the door, they can go no further than fifteen feet from the door. No King can supersede that. I was worried, but I still wanted to find Father, so I went inside.”

She hugged onto Raiju. “There was a storm that had risen, so it was dark inside even with the lamps. I hadn’t gone very far into the room when there was a flash of lightning, shadowing two figures in front of the window. It seemed like one had a sword in the other. As I was trying to understand what I’d seen, the figures turned, and Father’s body hit the floor in front of me. He was bleeding out from a stab to the chest…there was so much blood…” Hiding her face in Raiju’s fur briefly, she continued. “Then…then HE walked into the light.”

“Did you know who it was?” The pirate with the bandaged nose asked.

“In terms of recognizing who it was, I did. But as he expanded on his motives for acting, I realized that I never knew him at all. I’m not going to name him.” She declared, grabbing a cup and downing it, grimacing as she realized it was sake.

“How come?” The room exchanged baffled looks.

“Given who I am, and who he is…with the two of us being the only witnesses, I can’t casually name him, since I’d be accused of slander. I’m not in a position to make him confess; even though he freely admitted it, when Hak confronted him, everyone else there is on his side. Maybe if I had thought of it right after, but…I was in shock, and Hak was getting me to where he felt I’d be safe.” She explained.

“Hak’s your guard right?” The pirate who had initially asked the question asked.

Yona nodded. “He’s the only reason I’m still alive. They hadn’t counted on me witnessing what happened, so they were going to kill me too. Fleeing the castle was our only option. Later, when we were confronted with troops charged with bringing me, at least, back…he took the brunt of the impact, when we fell from the cliffs.” Averting her eyes from the group in front of her, she implied Hak had died shielding her from impact with the ground.

“So why come to Awa?” A different pirate, a scar on his right cheek, asked.

“To see if Jaeha would help me, as Ryokuryuu.” She replied. “And with what I’ve learned now about Kum-ji, there’s no way I’m leaving without seeing this through to the end.”

“So what happens after defeating Kum-ji?” Another pirate, with a bandaged right hand, asked, resorting to the child’s way of holding chopsticks after constantly dropping his food.

“We’ll need names. Of the girls taken in this group, of those previously sold, bribed officials, people blackmailed—the names of everyone affected by him directly.” She sighed. “Paper and ink likely aren’t cheap, and I’ll need plenty of both.”

“My sister married a stationer.” The first pirate remarked. “He’s been forced to practically give his paper to the local government for free, but I don’t think he’ll object to donating paper and ink for this.”

“Zeno’ll help with the writing, Ryokuryuu or the lad can help too.” He commented. “There’s likely too many people for you to get all the names.”

Nodding, Yona returned to her dinner, everyone else doing the same.

* * *

The pair sat side by side on the ship’s railing in the bow, her leaning her head on his shoulder. “I’m surprised you’re not trying to stop me, more than you already have.” She commented, his cat self warming her feet.

“After that speech you made? I know I can’t change your mind.” He explained with a shrug. “But, even more than that…I like seeing you struggle and fight for things the way other people do. And I can’t wait to see you pull this off.”

She blushed as he kissed her hand. “You really think I can do this?”

“Of course. Seeing you, these past few weeks…I knew the potential was always there, but Il-heika never let you realize it. I wish I could show you off to all those fools in the castle.” There was a dark edge to his grin. “I’m looking forward to seeing their faces when you whip their asses.”

Imaging all those people who were going to watch her murder, especially him, gob smacked and confused as she defeated them with a skill she was working towards, she returned his dark grin. His cat self leapt onto his lap, and they had the same expression of excitement and glee.

Her dark grin softening into a fond smile, she scratched behind his cat self’s ears, biting back a giggle when both their faces changed to a blissed-out one.

* * *

“You’ll get in for sure Yona-chan!” Jaeha exclaimed, giving her a thumbs up.

“I’ll do my best.” Yona replied, tugging at the collar of the Kai-style sleeves she was borrowing, making sure her scars were covered. _They shouldn’t be this red still…right?_

“Go become Kum-ji’s mistress!” A pirate urged Yun.

“I have his primary beat for sure. I’d never settle for less!” Yun boasted, doing his best to hide his nerves behind bravado.

“You’ve got the flare, right?” Yona double-checked, making a tiny adjustment to one of the black bows tied in her hair, accentuating her exotic crimson hair.

“In my sash.” Yun patted his sash. “We should get going; it might look suspicious if we come too close to the cut-off.”

“I’ll shadow both of you until you get there.” Jaeha said, in a tone that said that arguing this wasn’t an option.

“Good luck!” The nervous crew, with a hovering Shin-ah, and Zeno sitting on top of Kija, watched the pair, shadowed by Jaeha and Raiju, until they were out of sight.

* * *

_Hime-san underestimated his ability to get into places he wasn’t supposed to be. He reflected, darting into the room they were shoving Yun and Hime-san into, joining at least a dozen other women. Then again, it wasn’t like he showed off how he could go incorporeal as well as invisible._

_He stayed near Hime-san and Yun. The room reeked of fear, and sooner than he expected, the door opened, revealing the man from the carriage. Yan Kum-ji, ‘Lord’ of Awa._

_He had come to see if his men had been telling the truth about a crimson-haired girl._

_Raiju watched Kum-ji carefully, even as Yun did his best to distract attention from Hime-san. Flicking his gaze up to Hime-san’s face, he was darkly pleased by the look on her face and the fire blazing in her eyes._

_It was the complete opposite from her face back when Kan Tae-Jun bugged her all the time, and tried to force his company on her._

_And then Kum-ji brought up her ‘resemblance’ to Yona-hime._

_As much as it grated, watching her have to bow her head and be subservient to this pig, he did have to concede that her lying was much better, with her biggest give away—her eyes—cast down ‘modestly’ on the floor, offering to ‘pose’ as Yona-hime to aid in his business._

_It was enough, and the pig left the room, leaving Yona behind._

_Letting out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, he sniffed the floor where the pig had been standing, forcing back his disgust at the lust and greed lingering. “So if someone was stupid enough to help…you’d turn them away?” He looked up at her words, at the older girl she was addressing. “You’d just sit there and accept this as the way things are? Awa wasn’t always like this, just as Kum-ji will not be around forever.”_

_“What are you getting at?” The cynical woman asked._

_“All I’m saying…is to not shove that helping hand aside, when it comes to help you.”_


End file.
